mericans are growing more confident with the safety of the Internet when it comes to conducting business, survey results released last week show.

The survey, called the Consumer Internet Barometer, questioned 10,000 people nationwide in the fourth quarter last year. A third of the respondents said they felt that their online financial transactions would be safe, up from 27.5 percent in the period a year earlier. One-fourth felt that their personal information was safe when making purchases online, up from 21.9 percent.

"Consumers' concern about privacy of their personal information has a significant influence on their willingness to engage in business exchanges online," said Lynn Franco, director of the Consumer Research Center of the Conference Board. "This trust barrier is beginning to erode."

The board, along with NFO WorldGroup and Forrester Research, produces the Consumer Internet Barometer, which tracks consumers' use and trust of the Internet over time and looks for trends.

The survey also found that 61 percent of consumers went online at least once a month last year, up from 58.7 percent in 2001. The primary reason for going online was personal communication, followed by work-related activities and research.