FRAUD squad detectives yesterday issued a warning about a scam against people who bank online.

The practice, known as phishing, involves the conmen contacting account holders via e-mail and asking them to enter a website to update their banking details.

Detective Inspector Colin Gibson, head of Durham Constabulary's economic crime unit, said: "None of the major banks will contact their customers as a matter of course, asking for this type of information."

A handful of cases across County Durham have already been reported to his unit, which is based at force headquarters in Aykley Heads, Durham City.

The information is being forwarded to the National Hi-Tech Crime Unit in London, but police admitted that the international nature of the scam and the way it was set up made the chances of retrieving lost money remote.

The bogus websites, which police believe are run by Eastern European gangs, ask for the account holder's personal password.

Once they have obtained the number, they can access the account from any Internet connection in the world.

The next step in the scam is for cash to be transferred from the account to an innocent third party, who has been tricked into believing they are acting as an agent for an international company.

The third party then transfers the sum to the conmen.

Detectives said anyone who received a suspicious e-mail asking for personal details should contact their bank.

Further details on how to spot banking fraud are available from the website, www.banksafeonline.org.u