The days of the old-fashioned bank robber pulling a stocking over his head, and robbing a bank, are almost over, reports Sky News.
"Bank robbers have to go to banks – in the modern world they don’t even have to be in the same country as a bank to rob it,” said Martin Sutherland, managing director of Detica.
The threat posed by password thieves, phishers and hackers on home computers is well known.
Cyber crime is costing Britain at least £27bn a year, mostly though the theft of industrial secrets.
According to the study, the UK loses £9.2bn a year through the theft of the innovations and designs which drive industrial growth - what is known as intellectual property.
Another £7.6bn is lost through industrial espionage. The industries worst hit are defence, automobile, pharmaceuticals, software and computer services along with mining, and financial services.
