The impact of phishing attacks, a form of online identity theft, is now starting to match the problems caused by some virus outbreaks, according to security services provider MessageLabs.

The problem is primarily targeted at High Street banks, where fraudsters attempt to con customers out of their online banking details in order to steal money from their accounts.

MessageLabs says that during a recent attack on a US bank, it intercepted over 125,000 phishing emails within the first five hours. In comparison, it intercepted only 23,000 emails during a recent virus outbreak over the same time frame.

Paul Wood, chief information security analyst at MessageLabs, says that in many ways, the way a phishing attack is designed is similar to how viruses spread, with as many emails sent out as possible.

'Phishing has literally burst on to the scene, a year ago it was practically unheard of, now we're intercepting around 250,000 phishing-related emails or more every month,' said Wood.

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