Online risks can be just as dangerous as offline behaviors, report says
Summary: Using a computer without security could be riskier than leaving your home or car unlocked.
Online security risks are considered by many computer users to be just as dangerous as offline behaviors and events that could lead to bodily harm, theft or financial damage, according to a new survey from virus protection provider Webroot.
For example, approximately 85 percent of Internet users find sharing a password is a high-risk situation, while 87 and 88 percent also believe driving without a seatbelt and driving without insurance brings the same amount of risk.
This might also be an example that you might not want to admit you agree with, but does make sense overall. Approximately 61 percent of respondents admitted that a lost laptop, tablet or netbook is about the same or worse as having your wallet or purse stolen.
Think about it. It's much cheaper to replace the purse or wallet and the credit cards inside. Furthermore, you probably have a lot more information stored on your computer or smartphone (i.e. passwords, etc.) than just some pieces of plastic that you could have cancelled immediately.
The takeaway here is that while both activities might result in different consequences, the results could be unbelievably catastrophic nonetheless -- whether they result in physical or financial harm, or possibly both.
Webroot chief information security officer Jacques Erasmus explained in the report that "today’s Internet users share an increasing amount of personal information online, and cybercriminals target security loopholes and careless practices to carry out everything from credit fraud to identity theft."
Nevertheless, there might be a silver lining as Erasmus reassured that Webroot researchers found "people are cognizant of these risks, and savvier about the importance of practicing safe online behaviors.”
For reference, the report is based on the responses from 1,637 Internet users aged 18 and older in Australia, Singapore, the United Kingdom, and the United States surveyed from March 8-13, 2012.
Related:
- Software design linked to excess IT energy consumption
- The six best personal cloud storage choices for your stuff
- AOL's patent sale to Microsoft: stripped clean, or savvy move?
- Quick protection for older Macs from the Flashback trojan
- New Mac malware epidemic exploits weaknesses in Apple ecosystem
Kick off your day with ZDNet's daily email newsletter. It's the freshest tech news and opinion, served hot. Get it.
Talkback
Your idea of dangerous
Really?
Nothing in this article suggest to me that most users of personal electronics, mobile or desktop, are actively taking steps to make sure their data is truly secure.
To answer a survey question suggesting that you know certain behaviors are risky and that you take precautions to mitigate that risk is hardly the same as actually doing something about it. Lots of people TALK wisdom when it comes to electronic security, then join social sites where they share all manner of data that they simply assume is secure because making SURE it's secure is more work than they feel like doing. Lots of people talk a great game about sophsticated password policies and then walk away from their computer in a public place failing to use the lock feature at all.
What I see in the real world of day to day usage is hardly a majority of safe and secure approaches to personal computing or web use. I think this survey is another example of folks telling themselves what they wish was true instead of objectivey measuring what's actually happening. Follow the survey respondants around for a month and see what they actually DO to secure their data ... then you'll know somehting about real world data vulnerability.