Fear Of Cyber Crime Grips Americans - Survey

(RTTNews) - This is a phobia of a different kind and it is very pertinent in present times. A survey found that American consumers fear being victimized by cyber crime more than their counterparts elsewhere. More worrisome than the time and money lost, is the emotional fallout from the breach.

Norton Cybersecurity Insights Report released by Norton by Symantec (SYMC), has found that 80 percent of U.S. consumers are concerned that they will experience online crime.

The report found that globally, 62 percent of consumers believe it is more likely that their credit card information will be stolen online, while 38 percent think it is more likely they will lose credit card information from their wallets. Additionally, 47 percent reported they have been affected by cybercrime.

According to the report, seven in 10 Americans believe that using public Wi-Fi is riskier than using a public restroom.

Just over half of consumers believe that storing their credit card and banking information in the cloud is riskier than not wearing a seatbelt.

Also, more than half of parents believe online bullying is more likely than physical bullying at school.

Baby Bloomers top the list of those most aware of online security practices in the U.S. They have more secure online habits than Millennials, 36 percent of whom admitted to sharing passwords and other risky online behavior.

Across the 17 countries surveyed, consumers lost an average of 21 hours over the past year dealing with the fallout of online crime and nearly $358 per person - totaling roughly $150 billion.

Cybercrime also had an emotional fallout. Nearly half of consumers experiencing cybercrime in the U.S. felt furious after being affected by it.

Despite concern and awareness of cybercrime, the report showed that consumers are overconfident in their online security behaviors. When asked to grade their security practices, they consistently award themselves a solid "A." But in reality, most are not passing the most basic requirement of online security: password use.

In the U.S., of those using passwords, less than half always use a secure password, and are sharing passwords to online sensitive accounts with friends and family.

"Ironically, two in three believe it is riskier to share their email password with a friend than lend them their car, yet half of those sharing passwords do just that," the report stated.