While 92% of Americans Say Online Privacy Is Important, Only 20% Routinely Take Steps to Protect Themselves

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Americans are aware of the risk, yet are not taking action to stay safe

EAST PALO ALTO, Calif., June 19, 2019 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- A new survey of over 500 frequent business travelers found 92 percent of respondents believe that protecting their privacy is important. However, the study revealed their behavior suggests otherwise. This could be because nearly 60 percent of those surveyed believe the responsibility for cybersecurity is shared or belongs to someone else, making them vulnerable to hackers when they use a mobile phone or computer.

“When it comes to safety, people don’t treat cybersecurity as seriously as they do personal safety. While the personal safety of the majority of Americans is not at risk on a daily basis, 67 percent of gun owners cite personal safety as their reason for owning a gun1,” said June Bower Head of Marketing, InvinciBull. “The irony is every day nearly all Americans put their identity at risk when they use public wifi without a VPN, which can lead to hacking, identity theft or serious financial consequences. People are quick to buy guns for personal safety but when it comes to online safety, they don’t take action to protect themselves.”

The survey examined how road warriors feel about protecting their privacy online, what they say they’re doing to protect themselves, and what they’re actually doing to stay safe.

While 52 percent of respondents reported being hacked, there were some differences in men and women’s experiences and behaviors with online privacy and security. Overall women are more concerned and men take more risks.

  • Women are more worried. 48 percent of women say they are very concerned about the safety of their data over public wifi in contrast to 38 percent of men who say they’re very concerned
  • Women are more prone to being hacked. 58 percent of women had their personal data, email or credit card info stolen while 45 percent of men were hacked
  • Men take more risks. 77 percent of men say they log onto free wifi weekly; in contrast to 65 percent of women who say they log on weekly.  

Free public wifi, a proven threat vector for hackers, presents a safety conundrum. Even though almost all respondents (92 percent) say they’re concerned about the safety of their data when using public wifi, 83 percent have used public wi-fi recently. Of those, nearly 40 percent use it daily.

Respondents were mixed on identifying who is responsible for online protection. Although 52 percent of respondents said there’s no way to completely safeguard against risks, 60 percent say companies who collect the data should be responsible for protecting it, [and according to PwC Consumer Intelligence Series, Protect.me 2017, 82 percent said the government should step up and regulate companies who collect consumer data2].

When it comes to taking responsibility, 62 percent say they are responsible for protecting themselves online. Only half of the survey respondents (52 percent) said they had a personal VPN to protect against the risk of being hacked on public wifi. Most don’t use that protection consistently - their intentions are good but their behavior isn’t. In fact, of those that have a personal VPN, 61 percent reported that they sometimes or never turn it on.

“When it comes to privacy, each individual is responsible for keeping their personal data secure,” explained Gregory Falco, Ph.D. cyber research fellow at Harvard University and consultant to InvinciBull. “Hackers have become incredibly advanced and creative when it comes to stealing information from individuals and all it takes is one unsecure session for data to be compromised.”

Methodology: InvinciBull used a third party research firm to survey over American 500 business travelers, ages 18-55, in May 2019 who say they traveled on business approximately six times per year on average.

ABOUT INVINCIBULL:

InvinciBull, launched in September 2018 from US-based cybersecurity pioneer Finjan, takes security seriously, and lets users easily access the data and content they’re looking for without the risk of hacking and tracking. The InvinciBull VPN app is optimized for users to access all kinds of content when they want, wherever they are on the planet, with ease. InvinciBull VPN has a proprietary auto-protect setting that gives you the confidence to know that you’re always protected, safe and anonymous. Unlike other VPNs, InvinciBull never collects user data. Ever.

Follow InvinciBull:
Website: http://www.invincibull.io/
Twitter: @InvinciBullVPN
Facebook: facebook.com/InvinciBullVPN

Media Contact

Bonnie Rothman
Company B for InvinciBull
914-500-5150
bonnie@companyb-ny.com

1 Pew Research https://www.pewresearch.org/fact-tank/2018/12/27/facts-about-guns-in-united-states/
2 PwC Consumer Intelligence Series: Protect.me, 2017 

InvinciBull Privacy Research & Infographic 2019

Who’s Responsible For Your Online Safety?
Source: Finjan Holdings, Inc.

Released June 19, 2019