I'm sorry but if you get caught out by a phishing email you are devoid of any sense. They come from silly addresses and ask questions no bank would ever do via email. In short they are almost as bad as the Nigerian emails about helping people get millions out of africa. I guess it's a sort of economic Darwinism, the slow get ripped off and the smarter survive.

Will, Huntingdon, Cambs

I think the real problem here is that people are allowed to use the internet without any training in avoiding scams whatsoever. I think older people are more vulnerable to this than younger people, and I would propose a mandatory competence test on anyone over 30 before allowing them to shop or bank online. We need people to take responsibility for their own actions and security, and to learn to think and research for themselves before answering a dodgy 419 email or entering their bank details on a fishing site.

Simon Egan, Exeter, Devon UK

In general agreement with the Lords report and fully support their conclusion that the major responsiblity of security lies with the banks, credit firms etc. Secondly, web designers/creators need to STOP using cookies and develop other ways to store page details. Use of web cookies is the major security hole that needs to urgently plugged. Just try disabling cookies and see if any web sites actually work and display properly. Thirdly, I think selling on of debts by companies should be made illegal, that would put a STOP to the transfer of personal data to outside organisations and force the companies to deal with their customers properly.

TIP: When using the web and visiting sites, ALWAYS use the options from tools menu (Internet Options) to clear cookies, remove temporary, & clear history, before you switch of your computer.

John Rogers, Cannock,

I think as a witness I might add that some victims are co-conspirator's/I think that adults should be able to be SAFE-online/That General RULES do excist..I hope that REPORTING incidents is a successful remedy for such E-commerce Transactions..this past week I went to an ATM Machine at my Bank Branch--I paid a Credit Card issued by that Bank(BofA)..and the ATM did not issue a receipt(this happened before)I always report this to the employees inside the bank..this past week my Electronic Transaction did not show in my ONLINE Account days later..even though the CRT-issued a Transaction Completed(but no reciept)..So far I contacted the Bank Customer Service to announce my dis-pleasure with such things..and plan to follow-up by reporting them to the Sate of CT Banking Dept./should some issue arise by such shaddi-ness..I have since moved my business to a Branch in the next town..there are definite "infiltrations" inside Jobs and such endeavor..Institutions need POLICY about-"things".

Mark S. M., Danbury, U.S.A. / CT

As they say, "There isn't a patch for human stupidity." Honestly, the internet should stay as it is but give the more internet naive users a little crash course.

Mike Smith, Manchester,

To stephen case, pembroke , uk
If you bought off the internet and did not get your money back, then you should have gone back to the credt card company and they would have given your money back. They in turn will get the money from the bicycle company

Patrick, London, UK

The Internet once again is baring the brunt of blame. It reminds me of when people blame the internet for indecent pornography but fail to realise that digital cameras and scanners are the enablers. Criminals break the law, the Internet isn't a real person of place, it can't be blamed. It's just a bunch of computers linked together. The government hasn't a glue what to do about the Internet, it thinks it should do something but not quite sure what. I've worked on Government websites, so, believe me, they should be looking at their own security policies first. Glass houses and stones spring to mind.

Tom Fotheringham, London, UK

Let me guess.... time to privatise the internet ? time to "clamp down" ? Time for more of that thing the oh-so-wise "peers" love so much... control ?
I would have never guessed this could happen... why, I am absolutely stunned !!! golly !

luigi, London,

I think the real problem here is that people are allowed to use the internet without any training in avoiding scams whatsoever. I think older people are more vulnerable to this than younger people, and I would propose a mandatory competence test on anyone over 30 before allowing them to shop or bank online. We need people to take responsibility for their own actions and security, and to learn to think and research for themselves before answering a dodgy 419 email or entering their bank details on a phishing site.

Simon Egan, Exeter, Devon UK

The banks still have a long way to go in sorting out their own basic security issues let alone companies trading on the Internet. Having been a victim to a pickpocket in Valencia, the thieves managed to secure over 2000 pounds from my Abbey account via the multi-function debit card. The theft of this card as well as credit cards was reported immediately but obviously to no avail. No pin number was available to the thieves but amazingly, Abbey allowed the transactions to go through. When asked how this could happen, Abbey were very silent in their response as though not wishing to disclose major flaws in their own systems. Needless to say it took over tthree months to get the money re-instated and the mystery remains. My stolen credit cards were also used for over 6 months on auto routes in France and Spain in spite of being noted as being stolen. Again, the hassle was down to me to sort out with the banks as a simple phone call does not fix their lack of security.

Mike, Alicante, Spain

I'm not sure what precautions are employed to make certain that those purveyors of internet security systems, eg antivirus programs, firewalls, are not compromised by infiltration of criminal elements. If this were to happen (of course it might already have occurred), it wouldn't be the Wild West but the open savannah, with internet users being preyed upon at will by internet predators.
Banks and other financial organisations need to become heavily involved with the production protective software, and governments with the security aspects. After all, western civilisation is probably more vulnerable to cyber financial war than the death of citizens - more newswothy from the point of a terrorist, but less effective in producing the desired result.

Bill Q, Derby, UK

To stephen case, pembroke , uk
If you bought of the internet and did not get your money then you should have gone back to the credt card company and thet would have given your money back. They in turn will get the monry from the bike company

Patrick, London, UK

To say that the cyberworld is exactly akin to real-life is oversimplification and naive. Most people are unaware of how technology works and of how unsafe it is to pass personal information over the Internet, even on sites run by eBay, PayPal and high street banks. The fact is that people can only do so much to take precautionary steps to safeguard their personal data ie. bank/credit card details, home address etc, but these sophisticated gangs are indeed 'outfoxing' us and employing high-tech software that can crack any password. The use of wi-fi, whether in public or private, has also made hacking much easier.

There is therefore an urgent need for the authorities to step in, not to stifle freedom of expression or clamp down on politically inconvenient sites, but to make Internet use safer for online shopping, banking and networking. More accessible information about the realities of cyberfraud and a dedicated police team to tackle such crime would be laudable first steps.

Jennifer L., London,

This is not surprising. Bank, stores and credit card company sell on debts and client privilege information to third party debt collection agencies. These are most unscrupulous in their handling of this information. It is so easy for a company to be set up as debt collectors, get your info and access accounts and data. it would be better if the banks, stores and credit card company gave the same settlement option as a last chance to settle with the client thatn sell to 3rd parties and actually recognise the data protection act for what it stands.

This is the most abused act around and no one cares, not the courts, the banks, the credit card company. They pass on confidential information as if it has a profit value. Hence the source of the information required for the online crimes. I get 3 to 4 emails to reconfirm my banking details. The two biggest offending emails are from ebay and paypal. I can count up to 60 e mails from these two companies over the past 3 months

Mr F Clarke, Cheltenham Glos , UK

well given the option between government control and the "wild wild west", give me the wild west. i'll take my chances.

bob, gary, indiana

Bull.

More of the usual scare mongering. The internet is a haven for free expression. The powers that be are loosing their grip upon media control and wish to regulate the net to stifle dissent. Such efforts should be resisted.

Christopher, Edinburgh, Lothian

There is no much difference between the real world and the e-world.
Credit cards were very unsafe until a few years ago when chip and pin was compulsory. In fact when we just had to sign it was ridiculous unsafe.
Predatory pedophiles is another stupid reaction from press and goverment to produce fear. How many children have you reported been abused in the last years because of making contact through internet? However many more are abused by known family members, dissapear from the parents home in strange situations and internet has nothing to do with this. So "peers" find another way to terrorise us, your people, internet is not so scary yet as real life.

Ferdie Roberts, London,

Last week I received an e-mail informing me that I had won £552,000.00 in a National Lottery draw The e-mail was sent by a 'Nationl Lottery agent' with a Yahoo e-mail address. The next e-mail by the same person had an attachment complete with the National Lottery logo with their address that asked me for the copies of my National identification, physical address and my phone number. The third e-mail gave me a choice of three delivery plans for dispatch of my 'winning' cheque ranging from £525.00 for a same day service to a £325.00 for a seventy two hour sevice.
I reported the matter to the National Lottery and I received an e-mail from them saying that a lot of this was happening and I should be careful.
Whether the National Lottery did report this matter to the appropriate authorities as I forwarded the fraudulent e-mails to them, I do not know, but the problem is that even if Yahoo closed down the e-mail address the crooks would have another yahoo address in a minute.

Navraj Arora, Heston, U.K.

Fenris is absolutely right. If you go out every day and night leaving your front door and windows open, is it your fault of the burglar's when you lose you possessions?

And £33M is laughable when you consider the amount lost to credit/debit card fraud.

If people took as much care with their money on the 'net as they do in the real world a lot of this stuff just couldn't happen. If companies like eBay and PayPal can providee you with an anti-phishing toolbar then why can't Lloyds and Barclays?

There is a large movement in the US to regulate (read censor) Internet usage. There is nothing that governments like more than imposing largely redundant rules, regulations and laws. Don't let them get a toehold here.

John Annis, London,

What a load of rubbish.No intelligent person would be taken in by these amateurish and childish scams.
Fenris is correct,this is about more interference,more control,more of the nosey parker state.

Michael J Rigby, Blackburn, England

If by "out fox" they mean replying to an e-mail asking for their username and password, then by what reasonable means are banks supposed to protect customers from themselves? You can have the most thorough security infrastructure yet devised, but the operator using it will always be its weakest link. Good luck to all those companies!

Chris, Portsmouth,

i was ripped off by a company called discount bicycles in london, i ordered a bicycle online and took my card details, and charged me twice for a bicycle and would not give me back my money . i will never order online again.

stephen case, pembroke , uk

What nonsense.

Of course it is possible to take responsibility for one's own security. And we already have laws to deal with fraudsters and swindlers. What this is really about is government wanting to take control of the internet and prevent freedom of speech.

Many people lose money because they think they are about to gain by providing their bank details to help smuggle huge amounts out of another country.

In other words they get stung by their own greed and willingness to swindle someone else.

Fenris, Birmingham,

I'm sorry but this is a non-story. £33.5M is an accounting error to a large bank. Their stance is probably that its cheaper to put up with this level of fraud than fixing it. Fixing it, making the system more secure would cost more.

The same goes for the $2Bn, noting that that is $2Bn not $2Bn per year. As a fraction of the money flowing around the US it is just not that important, especially as it does not all get taken in one big hit. Wall Street wins or loses on that scale every day if not every hour.

Roger, London, UK

The first question to be asked of a topic that requires public money to be spent is to ask is the "Lawless Internet a problem that is both serious and urgent?

And the answer from the Lords is - they don't know.

But that doesn't stop them suggesting that we need new laws, education of the public and more security software (do I hear Consultants rattling their begging bowls). The best bit is their suggestion that software vendors should be responsible for losses due to security breaches. Come on guys, talk to people in the commercial sector and bring me your report once you've got some costs, analysis and realistic actions.

Michael fitzGerald, Walton on Thames, England

Not so much the Wild West, more like Chicago in the Roaring Twenties. Most people know who the villians are, where they live, and how they operate, but the law can't or won't do anything to shut them down.

Anyone prepared to be the cyberspace equivalent of Elliot Ness?

Adrian Ramsey, Leeds, Yorkshire

If the House of Lords really said 'the internet has become a playground for criminals' then for once I agree with the reformers. Get rid of these dinosaurs.

Octavia, Oxford,

And another memo from the department of the bleedingly obvious. I wonder how much our government spent on commissioning this report and does that qualify as fraud? What is the corollary we're meant to take away from this? Ban the Internet? Crime happens everywhere so stop whining about it at home (it be mooch worse on Inter-net)?

Pathetic. Why is it that our government seems to be populated by the lowest of the low and the thickest of the thick?

Phil Hampshire, London,

Thankfully someone has called for e-crime to be taken more seriously.

We get hit my so much online fraud, my online business, www.laptopsdirect.co.uk, employing 70 people and turning over £70m nearly went under. The police were utterly disinterested in these crimes even though we knew where the fraudster lived!!

A common misconception is that only the banks lose out in credit card fraud. However taking payments online is entirely at the risk of the merchant. So if the genuine card holder denies taking part in the transaction, it is the merchant that picks up the tab, NOT the banks.

The deeply frustrating aspect of these crimes is that we know where the fraudster will be the next day - collecting his package from the address he gave us. However getting the police to do a "controlled drop" is unachievable. The obvious concept that behind 1 fraudster is many frauds seems to be entirely mssing.

Nick Glynne
MD Easy Computers (Trading as www.laptopsdirect.co.uk)

Nick Glynne, Huddersfield, W Yorks