According to security researchers, phishing attacks and social media/email hacks are the most frequently reported attacks in the US and the UK, respectively.
This is the conclusion of the report “The Great Cyber Surrender”, created from the results of a survey of 2,000 people in the UK and the US. The report studies cybercrimes and their impact.
The survey found that one in three Britons are concerned about phishing scams, while only one in five Americans are. Ransomware concerns a third of Britons and Americans, and theft financial data worries a fifth of UK and US residents.
According to the report, cyberattacks also have psychological effects on victims (beyond financial ones). 75% of victims reported high levels of anxiety. Other psychological effects include fear (52%), shame (51%), anger (48%) and isolation (43%).
More than half (57%) of Britons do not find reporting cyberattacks to their government useful and just 21% say the legal system does a good job of protecting citizens from online fraud.
On the other hand, 55% of Americans believe the legal system adequately protects them from online fraud, but 37% do not find reporting crimes to the government helpful.
“Despite the fact that cybercrime is a huge issue, most people don’t know how to protect their digital identities, which ultimately have a huge impact on their real lives,” said Scarlet Jeffers, an executive at Clario (the company that conducted the research).
“It is clear that both the US and UK governments are not doing enough to implement policies that protect consumers , and people have lost faith in these institutions.“.
Researchers observed some differences in people's attitudes towards safety, depending on their age.
"A false sense of security was most evident among 18 to 25-year-olds, with 50% believing they are not important enough or vulnerable enough to attacks from hackers," the researchers said.
In contrast, participants aged 65 and over were less likely to hold this belief. Only 15% agreed with the statement “I am not vulnerable enough” and 22% with “I am not important enough to be targeted by hackers.”
Source: Infosecurity Magazine
