In today’s connected world, businesses are prime targets for cyber
attacks and unintentional missteps can result in critical exposure of
consumers’ sensitive personal information. According to the 2018
Norton LifeLock Cyber Safety Insights Report, released today from
Norton™ LifeLock™, a Symantec (NASDAQ: SYMC) company, based on an online
survey conducted by The Harris Poll of over 1,000 adults, nearly three
out of four Americans (72 percent) are more alarmed than ever about
their privacy. However, the majority accept certain risks to their
online privacy in exchange for convenience (66 percent) and are willing
to sell or give away certain personal information, such as their
location (55 percent) and internet search history (55 percent), to
companies.
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. In fact, 93 percent of
Americans believe it is important to require that companies give
customers control of how their personal data is used, while nearly half
(49 percent) believe it is absolutely essential. Adequate recourse is
also expected when personal information is not protected, with 51
percent of consumers 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.
“Our cyber safety is inherently tied to trust,” said Samir Kapuria,
executive vice president and general manager, Consumer Digital Safety,
Symantec. “Most consumers are aware their data is being captured from
the websites they visit, the social media they share and the apps they
use, and trust their information is being properly secured. However,
these same consumers are often unaware of how and why data is captured
and what companies do with it. The sheer amount of personal information
being collected about us shows no signs of slowing and there is greater
value placed on it than ever before.”
Additional U.S. findings include:
-
People view data protection as a right – not a privilege. Most
Americans are not willing to pay organizations to ensure protection of
their personal information. That’s particularly true when it comes to
social media providers, with 72 percent of consumers saying they are
not willing to pay providers to ensure their personal information is
protected when using them, compared to 58 percent for retailers, 57
percent for healthcare institutions and 56 percent for financial
institutions. -
Americans have little to no trust in social media providers. 94
percent of Americans express little (40 percent) or no (54 percent)
trust in social media providers when it comes to managing and
protecting their personal information. In fact, more than a quarter of
Americans with a social media account (28 percent) have deleted an
account in the past 12 months due to privacy concerns. -
Despite concerns, Americans embrace data sharing. While 85
percent of Americans are concerned about their privacy, many say they
are willing to sell or give away certain personal data, including
Internet search history (20 percent would give away for free, 35
percent would sell) and location (19 percent would give away, 36
percent would sell). Some are even willing to provide identification
document information, such as driver’s license or passport information
(18 percent would give away, 25 percent would sell). -
Younger generations are more inclined to take action on social
media accounts. 33 percent of Americans ages 18-38 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. However, younger generations
are significantly more likely to embrace data sharing in the digital
age, with more than 60 percent of those who are 18-38 willing to sell
or give away certain personal information (such as their location or
internet search history), compared to less than 45 percent of those
who are 54 and older.
Kapuria adds, “Although consumers want greater control over their
privacy and action taken against those that mishandle personal data,
they want this control to come without hassle or cost, so they are
willing to take risks in favor of convenience. Convenience continues to
reign supreme when it comes to sharing personal data.”
What’s Next for Cyber Safety?
Over the last year alone, more than 105 million Americans experienced
cyber crime – that’s two in five Americans (41 percent) – and 65 percent
believe it’s likely they will experience cyber crime in the next year.
In fact, 62 percent believe they are equally or more likely to
experience cyber crime than they are to get the flu! As a result of
cyber crime in the past year, losses totaled an estimated $11.3 billion
and 324.2 million hours lost dealing with the aftermath, with two out of
five (37 percent) spending a week or longer dealing with the problem.
Introducing NEW Norton™ 360 Plans
The realities of cyber crime can seem daunting – 84 percent of Americans
want to do more to protect their online activities and personal
information, while 43 percent don’t know how. As a result of consumers’
growing need to combat and protect against an influx of cyber threats,
Norton LifeLock is launching NEW Norton™ 360 Plans which provide
consumers with multiple layers of protection. This marks the first
integrated consumer cyber safety solution for Norton LifeLock combining
the power of Norton cyber security technology and LifeLock identity
theft protection together in one solution.
NEW Norton 360 Plans may include:
- Device security
- Secure VPN for online privacy
- LifeLock Identity Alert™ System
- U.S.-Based Identity Restoration Specialists
- Million Dollar Protection™ Package
- Credit Monitoring (One to three bureaus, varies by plan)
- Dark Web Monitoring powered by LifeLock†
- Safecam to help block webcam takeovers
- Cloud backup (for PC)
- Smart firewall
- Password manager
- Norton LifeLock Virus Protection Promise
There are several best practices consumers can follow to help safeguard
against online threats:
-
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 or use the
information to commit identity theft. -
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 unauthorized access to your online accounts. Always
change the default passwords to something strong and unique on your
devices, services, and Wi-Fi networks.
To learn more about the real impact of cyber crime and how consumers can
help protect their online privacy, identity, and digital information,
visit here.
About the Norton LifeLock Cyber Safety Insights Report
The Norton LifeLock Cyber Safety Insights Report is based on an online
survey of 1,004 U.S. adults (aged 18+), commissioned by Norton LifeLock
and produced by The Harris Poll, an independent research firm. Data were
collected in October 2018. Data are weighted where necessary by age,
gender, race/ethnicity, education, employment, household income, region,
marital status, household size, and internet usage to bring them in line
with their actual proportions in the population. Propensity score
weighting was also used to adjust for respondents’ propensity to be
online. No estimates of theoretical sampling error can be calculated.
How We Define Cyber Crime
The definition of cyber crime continues to evolve as avenues open up
that allow cyber criminals to target consumers in new ways. Each year,
we will evaluate current cyber crime trends and update the report’s
methodology as needed, to ensure the Norton LifeLock Cyber Safety
Insights Report provides an accurate snapshot of the impact of cyber
crime as it stands today. In the 2018 Norton LifeLock Cyber Safety
Insights Report, cyber crime is defined as having personally experienced
a crime committed with devices over the internet, including, but not
limited to, detecting unauthorized access on an online account, learning
information was exposed in a data breach, and detecting malicious
software on a device. Visit https://www.symantec.com/about/newsroom/press-kits/2018-norton-lifelock-cyber-safety-insights-report
to learn more.
About Symantec
Symantec Corporation (NASDAQ: SYMC), the world’s leading cyber security
company, helps organizations, governments and people secure their most
important data wherever it lives. Organizations across the world look to
Symantec for strategic, integrated solutions to defend against
sophisticated attacks across endpoints, cloud and infrastructure.
Likewise, a global community of more than 50 million people and families
rely on Symantec’s Norton and LifeLock product suites to protect their
digital lives at home and across their devices. Symantec operates one of
the world’s largest civilian cyber intelligence networks, allowing it to
see and protect against the most advanced threats. For additional
information, please visit www.symantec.com
or connect with us on Facebook, Twitter, and LinkedIn.
NOTE TO U.S. EDITORS: If you would like additional information on
Symantec Corporation and its products, please visit the Symantec News
Room at http://www.symantec.com/news.
All prices noted are in U.S. dollars and are valid only in the United
States.
†Dark Web Monitoring in Norton 360 Plans defaults to monitor an email
address only. Additional information may be added for monitoring
purposes with some plans.
Symantec, the Symantec logo and the Checkmark logo are trademarks or
registered trademarks of Symantec Corporation or its affiliates in the
U.S. and other countries. Other names may be trademarks of their
respective owners.
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