With Increased Internet Confidence Comes Riskier Behavior, Survey Finds

The results of the third Internet Confidence and Safety Survey by Trend Micro were announced today. The study provides an overall measurement of consumers' confidence and perceived safety of the Internet. The overall global confidence and safety score increased from a confidence index of 39.9 to 40.7, due to an increase in Japanese and U.S. consumers' confidence and perceived safety.

In the U.S., respondents who view the Internet as currently being "very safe" increased from 45 percent in February 2007 to 53 percent in August 2007. Similarly, U.S. respondents who believe the Internet will be much safer in the next six months increased from 26 percent in February to 32 percent in August. The survey also found that as U.S. consumers have more confidence in the Internet, they engage in riskier behavior. Respondents who reported they bank online increased 9 percent; and 16 percent, compared to 12 percent in February, reported the use of public hotspots for Wi-Fi access. 

Japan saw an 18 percent increase in consumer confidence and perceived safety of the Internet, from 9 percent in February to 27 percent in August. The percentage of respondents in Japan who had infected computers within the past six months dropped from 17 percent in February to 13 percent in August. Correspondingly, respondents who are "very confident" their Internet security software is protecting their computer increased 15 percent, from 26 percent in February to 41 percent in August. 

While confidence in the Internet rose in the U.S. and Japan, it decreased in the UK, France and Germany. In the UK, the percentage of respondents who reported infection of malware on their computers in the past six months rose 11 percent, from 31 percent in February to 42 percent in August. At the same time, more UK respondents participated in riskier online behavior such as using their credit card to make purchases over the Internet and using a public hotspot for Wi-Fi access.

Other noteworthy findings from the survey include:

• In France, 46 percent of the respondents are very confident their Internet security software is protecting their computers, an 11 percent decrease from February.
• Germany saw a 10 percent decrease from 28 percent in February to 18 percent of respondents who believe the Internet will be much safer in the next six months.

"With the evolving threat landscape and the silent nature of Web threats, consumers need to properly protect their computers at all times," said Carol Carpenter, vice president of Trend Micro consumer marketing.

The Internet Confidence and Safety survey was compiled during August 2007 and takes place in six-month intervals. It surveys 1,500 consumers from Japan, the United States, United Kingdom, Germany and France based on three different continents.

The survey analyzes consumer perception based on a number of Internet-related indicators such as how safe and confident consumers feel when using the Internet, their view regarding the future safety of the Internet, how many consumers have experienced actual infections during the past six months, their confidence in their security software, and an analysis of their online Internet activities. Additionally, the research includes a measure of consumer perception around security related to mobile phone Internet usage.