Only three per cent of web-based applications are secure enough to resist hackers, according to research.

Tests conducted on behalf of application testing specialist Sim Group show that 97 per cent of websites have 'serious security flaws', leaving data and systems open to abuse.

If the situation continues, trust in online services could be damaged, deterring already nervous consumers from buying online.

Businesses must test web-based applications for security flaws with the same stringency they apply to hardware and networks, warned Sim Group managing director Bob Bartlett.

"This figure doesn't surprise me, and it's probably something to do with head-in-the-sand syndrome," he said.

[ Read more ]