A new Pew Internet Project study finds that Americans are torn when it comes to online shopping.

While 78 percent of respondents found online shopping convenient, and 68% felt that it saved time, a sizable 75% were concerned with e-commerce’s security, particularly when it came to giving out credit card numbers online. This perception can be a real minus for online businesses.

The security risks, real or perceived, are hampering the growth of the Internet economy, said John Horrigan, associate director of the Pew Internet Project and author of the report. “These inconsistent notions about the online shopping environment show that, even as e-commerce matures, people’s confidence in the security of online shopping remains as an issue,” Horrigan said in a statement. “If people’s worries about security of personal information were eased, the pool of online shoppers would be greater.”

What’s really ironic about this situation is that many payment security experts feel that using credit cards online is generally much safer than using them at brick and mortar establishments. More information gleaned from the poll can be found at this Small Business Computing article.