WebProNews

An estimated 63.1 million U.S. households are now doing their banking online according to a survey from CheckFree.

Security concerns about online banking decreased from 17 percent in 2007 to 13 percent in the latest survey. Overall, online security was third among barriers to online banking this year compared to its number-one spot in 2007.

An estimated 31 million households use online banking Web sites to pay bills, 47.9 million households use biller Web sites and 16 million use both online banking and biller sites to receive and pay bills. About 63.1 million households pay at least one bill online in an average month, an increase from 61 million in 2007. These households collectively paid 934 million bills in a typical month.

Internet using households pay an average of 11 bills per month. Online bill payments at bank and biller Web sites made up 42 percent of total monthly payment, followed by 31 percent of bills paid by check.

Fifty-one percent of survey respondents said the environment was a reason they chose to pay bills online. Saving time and gaining control over their finances were benefits cited by 44 percent of respondents.

Other reasons for paying bills online included reducing clutter, saving gas, and not having to buy stamps.

"As more consumers gain experience and become more comfortable using the Internet, their confidence in online security grows and we see an increase in the adoption of online banking and bill payment services," said Todd Lesher, division president, CheckFree electronic Banking Services, now part of Fiserv. "

"For a minority of users who haven't used the Web as long, we see that security concerns remain a significant barrier to online banking and bill payment adoption."