Bank account hacks (23%), billing and invoice fraud (26%) and phishing scams (24%) were the most common types reportedThe survey also found that fraud can have a detrimental impact on SMEs’ ability to grow their business with consumers placing a high premium on security.The research shows that average consumer spending drops by 46.2% after being a victim of fraud, with 91.2% of victims spending less in the six months that follow.Fear of fraud is pushing consumers to larger businesses, further undermining SME business. Visa’s study indicates that consumers are seven times more likely to feel safe shopping with large businesses (45%) than small ones (6%). After price of goods and services (62%), transaction security (48%) was cited as the most important factor for shoppers when deciding whether to make a purchase of goods or services online, following the ease of returns and refunds (29%) and customer reviews (27%) Mandy Lamb, managing director Visa UK & Ireland says: “Small businesses should not be held back by fraud. We already invest heavily in technology to safeguard small businesses - in effect levelling the playing field between small and big businesses as they trade online."She says that Visa has spent £8 billion globally to enhance network security over the last five years, preventing an estimated £30 billion in global fraud per annum.