The average victim has been scammed out of £638, while one in 10 has lost more than £1,000.

While online fraud is typically associated with older people, younger generations are frequently targeted and defrauded out of larger sums, according to the study by secure payments solution, Shieldpay.

A quarter of 18-34 year-olds have been defrauded while shopping online at a cost of £767 on average and nearly one in six have handed over more than £1,000 to criminals.

Separate research by Lloyds Bank published last month revealed young adults are falling victim to all types of online fraud at a greater rate than any other age group.

Tom Clementson, director of consumer at secure payments solution Shieldpay, said: “It takes just moments to go online, order an item and see the money taken from your bank account. As we lead increasingly digital lives, this has become as normal as buying something over the counter.

“However, it also takes just moments for fraudsters to target unsuspecting consumers to part them from their hard-earned money and their methods are becoming more advanced by the day. The sky-high levels of fraud the UK is currently experiencing shows no sign of slowing down soon but this can’t go on. Fraudsters have had it good for too long.”

Clementson said shoppers can take simple steps to protect themselves like only shopping on trusted websites, checking the website is secure and never clicking on links in unexpected emails go some way to keeping money safe.