BEIJING -- The People's Bank of China, the country's central bank, on Wednesday called for more people to be alert of potential risks concerning online payment methods.

About 40 percent of the 221 million people who use online payments regularly do not pay enough attention to safety, while 40 percent of consumers ignore possible risks when problems occur, said Zhou Jinhuang, deputy director of the PBOC's payment department.

Gu Jian, deputy director of the bank's network security bureau, said the risks include the loss of personal information, identity theft and bank account hacking.

A nationwide campaign to promote online payment safety began on Wednesday, involving over 40 banks and 30 online payment agents.