The worker appears totally focused, scanning the screen then typing furiously. But bosses should not be fooled. The supposedly diligent computer user is more than likely surfing for travel deals, doing the weekly shop or even aimlessly wandering through cyberspace.

A survey shows that millions of Britons are wasting swaths of their lives surfing the web without any real purpose.The research by YouGov found that seven in ten of Britain’s 34 million users fall into the habit of Wilfing — What Was I Looking For? — both at work and at home. One in four internet users spends nearly a third of internet time Wilfing — equivalent to spending an entire working day a fortnight randomly browsing the net.

The survey of 2,400 people, commissioned by Moneysuper-market.com, the price comparison website, revealed that shopping websites were the biggest cause of Wilfing.

Experts said that internet users were being offered so much choice online that it was easy for them to get distracted.

Men are much more likely to be Wilfers than women. A third of them said that the habit had damaged their relationships with partners. One in five men was “distracted” from work or study by adult entertainment or sex websites.

Internet users aged 55 or over were three times less likely likely to Wilf than those aged under 25.

Pete Cohen, a life coach, said that cutting out Wilfing took both planning and willpower. “These days there are all manner of websites vying for our attention,” he said. “Internet users need to set themselves a specific surfing goal and time limit to keep on track.

“Try not to become distracted. When buying items online, think about using services that will trawl the net for you and allow you to get off the computer and on with your life.”

Jason Lloyd, head of broad-band at Moneysupermarket .com, said that while the internet was designed to make it easier for people to access information quickly, they were becoming distracted more often.

He said: “Our study shows that although people log on with a purpose, they are now being offered so much choice and online distraction that many forget what they are there for, and spend hours aimlessly Wilfing instead.

“It’s important that people do not allow distractions to get in the way when surfing the internet, as it can affect productivity in the workplace and relationships at home.” Previous studies have shown that more than a quarter of employees spend an hour or more a day on personal e-mails when they should be working.

In addition, British workers admit that they surf the web regularly at work. It has been estimated that businesses are losing thousands of working days each year as a result.

Caught in net

— Up to 10 million people are addicted to the internet in China. The Government has banned under18s from internet cafés and no new ones may open this year

— Internet addicts in China face drug therapy, acupuncture and mild electric shocks when treated at a military-style boot camp clinic that costs about £650 a month

— In Britain the Priory Clinic said that increasing numbers were suffering addictions to eBay. Some spent thousands on the auction website and said that they would rather be bidding than dating

— A 12-step recovery programme, mimicking that set up by Alcoholics Anonymous, has been drawn up for e-mail addicts

Source: Times database