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Figures from payments association APACS indicate that online banking fraud losses have declined by 67% over the past year, though online card fraud continues to be a problem.

The APACS stats show that online banking fraud losses, which includes phishing, have dropped from £22.4m for January to June 2006, to £7.5m for the first six months of this year.

Payment association Apacs has released figures showing 'around 10m' UK shoppers have registered their credit and debit cards with MasterCard and Visa’s online verification schemes.

The group says more retailers have also adopted the Verified by Visa and MasterCard SecureCode systems, which remove their liability if fraudulent transactions take place and are reported to help increase average order values.

Online fraud figures released yesterday by APACS, the UK payments association, show a 44% rise in online banking fraud last year.

Offline credit card fraud at UK retailers fell by 47% to a total of £72.1m, from 2005's figure of £135.9m, thanks largely to the introduction of chip and pin.

Fearful of damaging their reputations and denting consumer confidence, online banks are hiding the true extent of online fraud, according to a senior police officer.

The Guardian reports that Detective Superintendent Russell Day told an all-party parliamentary group investigating online fraud that banks are failing to report instances of phishing and other forms of swinish behaviour.

UK web shoppers will spend £6.25 billion on groceries a year by 2010, an increase of 235% over last year, according to a study by Paypal.

Research by the payment firm suggests British online spending will double to £39 billion, with the grocery sector taking the lion’s share of the market.