One Million UK Kids Make Illicit Online Purchases

Nearly one million UK children are using their parents' credit cards to shop online without their knowledge, says CPP.

A survey of 8-16 year olds by the 'life assistance' company -- it sells insurance products -- revealed that children are spending on average of £25 (US$48) for every illicit purchase. However, 5 percent are shelling out between £75 and £150 a time, racking up to £191m annually.

The research also highlighted that 70 percent of UK children know the sites where their parents shop online and a further 20 percent know the passwords and usernames for their parents online shopping accounts.

Parents are in the dark when it comes to their kids behaviour as only 2 percent think their children would make online purchases without their permission and only six percent admitted their kids have access to their credit card details. However, with 44 percent of parents book-marking their favourite online shopping sites and a third saving their bank card details online, they're making it very easy for their children to buy online without their knowledge.

"Being lax with details online could not only tempt children into making sneaky purchases online, but also exposes parents to the dangers of online fraud. Web fraudsters are getting increasingly sophisticated, and card-not-present fraud is on the rise," said Michael Lynch, an identity theft expert at CPP.