Released today, the Norton LifeLock Cyber Security Insights Report for New Zealand is packed with information gleaned from a survey of over 1,000 kiwis in October 2018. Comprehensive, to say the least, the report makes for worrying reading. Here’s some of the “highlights” for you…
• 33% of New Zealand consumers surveyed were impacted by cybercrime in 2018 – That’s over 1 million New Zealanders!
• At least 31% of those impacted have lost some money to cyber crime: AN ESTIMATED $102 MILLION and around 9.8 million hours dealing with the aftermath!
• 32% of New Zealanders needed a week or more to resolve it.
Just over two out of three (68 percent) New Zealanders are more alarmed than ever about their privacy. However, the majority (75 percent) accept certain risks to their online privacy in exchange for convenience and are willing to sell or give away certain personal information, such as their location and internet search history, to companies. Despite concerns, some New Zealanders embrace data sharing: Most say they are willing to sell or give away certain personal data, including Internet search history (12 percent would give away for free, 33 percent would sell) and location (14 percent would give away, 36 percent would sell). Many are even willing to provide identification document information, such as driver’s license or passport information (10 percent would give away, 19 percent would sell).
89% Say They Are Concerned About Their Privacy
85% of New Zealanders surveyed want to do more to protect their privacy, yet 54% don’t know how to.
Consumers have low trust in providers to manage and protect their personal information yet 68% accept certain risks to their online privacy to make their life more convenient.
Steps taken to protect personal information/online activities:
• 65% – share only limited information on social media
• 51% – clear/disable cookies
• 41% – change default privacy settings on devices
• 40% – read the T&Cs in full before installing or downloading a device or service
• 32% – stopped using public Wi-Fi
• 27% – use something other than their full name for social media profiles
• 21% – deleted a social media account
• 16% – used anonymous payment methods
• 14% – used a VPN to encrypt information sent to and from my devices
• 12% – use an encrypted email service
• 4% – other
This means that only two percent of New Zealanders trust social media providers with their data. People view data protection as a right – not a privilege. Most New Zealanders are not willing to pay organisations to ensure protection of their personal information. That’s particularly true when it comes to social media providers, with 82 percent of consumers saying they are not willing to pay providers to ensure their personal information is protected when using them, compared to 76 percent for retailers, 71 percent for financial institutions, and 70 percent for healthcare institutions.
Younger generations are more inclined to take action on social media accounts. 32 percent of New Zealanders ages 18-21, 25 percent of those who are 22-38, and 31 percent of those who are 39-53 who have a social media account deleted it in the past 12 months due to privacy concerns, compared to only 20 percent of those who are 54 and older.
In the age of information sharing, control is now at the heart of society’s privacy paradox – from who should have it to what the consequences should be when it is mishandled. A large majority (97 percent) believe it is important to require that companies give customers control of how their personal data is used. Nearly half of those people (47 percent) believe it is absolutely essential. Adequate recourse is also expected when personal information is not protected, with 54 percent of people believing it is absolutely essential that companies be required to provide a way for consumers to report misuse of their personal data, or consequently be fined.
Stay safer online with these best practices
• Never open suspicious-looking emails: Cyber criminals send fake emails or texts that may look legitimate. The links in these emails or texts contain malicious software that can download malware and spyware. The software may be able to mine your computer for personal information, which is then sent to a remote computer where the attacker could sell the information on the dark web.
• Make use of a VPN on public Wi-Fi: Many public Wi-Fi connections are unencrypted. This could give cyber criminals a chance to snoop on data being sent and received by your device. If there are software vulnerabilities on your device, attackers can inject malware to help them gain access to your data. In some cases, attackers create fake Wi-Fi hotspots purporting to be legitimate networks.
• Own your online presence: Carefully read the terms and conditions before opening an account or downloading an application, including social media accounts. Be sure to, set the privacy and security settings on web services and devices to your comfort level for information sharing.
• Get two steps ahead and manage your passwords: Switch on two-step verification or multi-factor authentication wherever offered to help prevent unauthorised access to your online accounts. Always change the default passwords to something strong and unique on your devices, services, and Wi-Fi networks.
The research was conducted online in New Zealand by The Harris Poll on behalf of Norton LifeLock among 1,002 adults aged 18+ between October 9-30, 2018. Data are weighted where necessary by age, gender, education, region, marital status, and household size to bring them in line with their actual proportions in the population. No estimates of theoretical sampling error can be calculated.
Source: Symantec NZ