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By Pia Heikkila, 11 December 2000 15:11

NEWS The study found that awareness of security technologies, such as firewalls, encryption and digital signatures, among UK users is 30 per cent lower than on the continent. The survey also suggested that surfers' ignorance is partly the fault of e-tailers. Thomas Cooper, author of the report and senior analyst at PwC, said UK e-tailers spend too much time on marketing and not enough speaking with users. He said: "The lack of awareness is due to the fact that UK ecommerce firms are more focused on marketing their products than interacting with the end user. By contrast, German and Scandinavian online retailers, for instance, seem to be more aware of the end user and their security needs and are offering advice and support." Simon Davies, director of Privacy International, agreed the end user should not be solely blamed for ignorance. He said: "We should not be pointing fingers at the users, security is a shared responsibility. Companies should make sure they are compliant with the Data Protection Act and end users should make sure they are using appropriate measures to prevent fraud." According to Martin Whitehead, head of information security at Co-operative Bank, increasing end user security can often be done in a few simple steps. He said: "To educate end users about security may seem like a big challenge, but simple steps can often be the most effective. To make surfers understand the importance of security is a good starting point." The study covered major European markets including France, Germany, Italy, Scandinavia and the UK.