smallbusiness.co.uk: Helping your business think big

Small companies lose more than £750 a year to online crime and fraud, the Federation of Small Businesses (FSB) reports.

According to the Inhibiting Enterprise report, 54 per cent of companies have been the victim of such crimes, with the average annual cost standing at £768.

The FSB reveals 37 per cent have received phishing emails, 15 per cent have experienced card-not-present fraud and a further 15 per cent has suffered IT issues such as hackers and viruses.

Additionally, the research shows a third of small companies do not report online fraud to their banks or the police, while 53 per cent would like to receive more information on what to do after being the victim of such crimes.

Mike Cherry, home affairs chairman of the FSB, says: 'The internet is a huge and unregulated area but businesses have to have confidence that there are at least some structures there to support them.'

The group is also calling for a central method for reporting e-crime and for the police to establish a local contact for small businesses to work with.

Recently, the UK Online Fraud Report from payment management firm CyberSource found two-thirds of consumers are worried about the security risks of internet shopping.

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