October 2012
Featured in this insight: IT & telecommunications, Retail, International
Poll discovers Americans feel unsafe on the internet: New research released by McAfee, a security software company, and the National Cyber Security Alliance (NCSA), who surveyed 1,000 adult internet users in the U.S. suggests that nine out of 10 Americans do not feel protected on the web.
The report revealed that 59% think their job depends on a secure and guarded internet. Some 79% admitted that losing access to the web for 48 hours would be disruptive, with 33% saying it would be extremely disruptive. However, 90% of those surveyed do not feel completely safe from viruses, hackers and malware.
This is in line with a study that McAfee conducted in May, which showed that one in five Americans browse the internet without any real-time protection, whilst 12% have no security software whatsoever. Some 7% admitted to purposely disabling their protection software.
Due to data breaches last year, a quarter (26%) of Americans were informed by a business or online service provider that their personal information was either compromised or irretrievable.
Executive director of the NCSA, Michael Kaiser, gave his view on the findings: “Everyone should take security measures, understand the consequences of their actions and behaviours and enjoy the benefits of the Internet.”
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