Online fraud is now the most common crime in the countrywith almost one in ten people falling victim, the latest figures have revealed.

More than five and a half million cyber offences are now thought to take place each year accounting for almost half of all crime in the country.

But just a fraction of offences are reported to the police because victims either feel embarrassed or believe little can be done to catch those responsible.

The figures were revealed in the annual Crime Survey of England and Wales (CSEW) which seeks to accurately assess the number of offences by interviewing people about their personal experience of crime.

According to the survey the total number of all offences in the 12 months to September topped 11.8 million, of which 3.6 million were fraud and further 2 million were related to computer misuse.

The next most common offence was theft with 3.5 million cases, while there was 1.2 million incidents of criminal damage and 1.3 million offences of violence against the person.