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According to a survey carried out by online payments provider Paypoint, 98 per cent of shoppers check for some sort of security indication before making a purchase. But almost 80 per cent admitted that they would put their trust in a site that had a simple and clear payment procedure, even if it had no security authentication.

There has been a growing trend towards online fraud, as the security of Chip and PIN systems have meant criminals are now taking to the web to pocket other people's hard earned cash.

Eager to clamp down on the cybercrime epidemic, the House of Lords Science and Technology committee recently published a report, calling upon the government to step up its efforts in protecting the public from online theft.

As well as proposing banks be held responsible for losses incurred by online fraud, the report calls for a procedure to be introduced allowing customers to go straight to the police when found to be a victim of cybercrime, rather than going to their banks.

Last year, card fraud committed online, over the phone or via post rose by a staggering 37 per cent, according to the UK's payments association APACS.