APACS Hails Internet Banking's Success

Online banking has risen dramatically in popularity over the past few years, APACS said today.

The UK's payments association said that 21 million people used the service last year - up from just 3.5 million in 2000. This means that the sector has grown by 505 percent over the past seven years.

Sandra Quinn, director of communications at APACS, said: "Online banking has changed the way we access our bank accounts, and is now second nature to many of us. The fact that the number of people banking online now exceeds 21 million is testament to how easy, convenient and safe this way of banking is.

"In the future we expect more and more people to use online banking to make payments rather than just checking balances, particularly in light of the recent introduction of the new faster payments service. This enables customers to make one-off payments over the internet or by phone within hours, not days."

As well as welcoming the success of banking's transition to the internet, APACS also issued a warning over fraud to banking customers. Internet scams such as fraudsters using spyware and phishing - sending official-looking messages to customers asking them to send back their personal details - have caused concern.

Industry figures show that the overall amount of money lost by customers to online banking fraud fell by 33 percent in 2007. However, phishing attacks have been found to have increased by 180 percent over the first half of 2008.

Ms Quinn commented: "We strongly urge banking customers to make sure they remain wary of online scams such as unsolicited emails claiming to be from their bank, and to only use a fully protected PC with regularly updated anti-virus software and a firewall installed and switched on."