Older computer users have yet another website aimed at catering to their interests. Activelives.co.uk hopes to appeal to the 30 per cent of the online population that is aged 45-plus - the 'silver surfers', as they're becoming known.

Content on the site includes cookery and gardening ideas, financial and holiday advice, and interactive opportunities for online shopping and chat sessions.

Hugh Scully, of Antiques Roadshow fame, will be asking members of the site to scour their attics and see if they've got any valuable family heirlooms to cash in.

The company behind the website, Media Ventures Group, says that its target over-45s group owns 80 per cent of the wealth in the country and spend more than £140bn annually.

However, a new survey sponsored by Microsoft and Age Concern found that there is a significant reluctance among older surfers to shop online. More than 70 per cent of those surveyed said they had concerns about credit card fraud.

The survey estimated that more than four million over-50s now have their own computer connections, while a further 600,000 use them at colleges or libraries.

www.activelives.co.uk