Government should step in to stop phishers

Consumers would have an easier time dodging the growing number of phishing attacks if the government stepped in to help out, according to the anti-spam community.

Mail-filtering company SurfControl has said that government should take a stronger stand over the issue and start educating consumers to not give their details away to email identity thieves.

As well as advising consumers on email and web practices for e-tail and financial service firms, SurfControl want to see a standard introduced for those conducting business over the web, advising them to let their customers know they will never ask for personal details over the internet.

Several large banking firms, including HSBC and NatWest, have already put up such notices on their website.

Martino Corbelli, SurfControl's director of marketing, said that without greater protection, consumers' faith in ecommerce would be damaged.

Richard Allan, LibDem MP and joint vice-chairman of APIG (All Party Internet Group), told silicon.com that more prosecutions, not legislation, would help fend off the attacks.

"Phishing is straightforward financial fraud... What the government needs to do is ensure more high-profile financial fraud," he said. "Government should take a role in safe-surfing but warnings would be far more effective on banks' and ISPs' websites, not the government's – that's where most people would see them."