Internet companies, retailers and the government must do more to protect people from the dangers of the "lawless Wild West" of cyberspace, says an influential group of British parliamentarians.
In a critical report, the MPs say the Government and industry have a "laissez-faire" approach to online crime thatcould lead to an "economically disastrous" loss of public confidence in the internet.
With computer fraud growing more sophisticated, people have little hope of protecting themselves alone, the House of Lords' science and technology committee says.
"You can't just rely on individuals to take responsibility for their own security," says chairman Lord Broers. "They will always be outfoxed by the bad guys."
Cybercrime is one of the fastest growing criminal activities, not just in Britain, and includes a huge range of illegal activity such as financial scams, computer hacking, downloading pornographic images, virus attacks, email stalking and creating websites that promote racial hatred.
The lawmakers say that industry - from software makers and ISPs to banks and shops - must better protect customers.
And they criticise the Government for insisting that responsibility for security rests with internet users.
"This is no longer realistic, and compounds the perception that the internet is a lawless 'Wild West'," the report says.
The Government must work with the European Union to see if more responsibility could be legally handed to computer and software makers and police must get the extra funds to launch a central e-crime unit.
"The choice is either to intervene now ... or to let it grow unchecked, and risk an economically disastrous, long-term loss of public confidence in the internet," the report concludes.
