Consumers are unable to resist a strong, free Wi-Fi network and their online behaviours may be placing their personal information at risk, according to Norton By Symantec’s (NASDAQ: SYMC) 2017 Norton Wi-Fi Risk Report, released today.
“There is a deep divide between what people think is safe when it comes to using public Wi-Fi versus the reality,” said Ritesh Chopra, Country Manager, Consumer Business Unit, Symantec. “What someone thinks are private on their personal device can easily be accessed by cybercriminals through unsecure Wi-Fi Networks or even apps with privacy vulnerabilities.”
The Norton Wi-Fi Risk Report surveyed more than 15,000 consumers in 15 countries to learn about their public Wi-Fi practices and perceptions. Many of the global findings show that people are aware of the risks of public Wi-Fi, but are not necessarily changing their behaviours. India-specific highlights include:
Consumers Willing to Sacrifice Security for Free Wi-Fi Consumers’ dependency on a quick, free connection via public Wi-Fi could be placing their personal information at risk.
54 percent of Indians don’t use a Virtual Private Network (VPN) to secure their Wi-Fi connections, even though it is considered a best way for protecting personal information. A worrying Eight percent are unaware of the term, VPN
73 percent of Indians will do or swap something for a strong Wi-Fi signal including watching a three minute advertisement (35 percent), to something as critical as allowing access to personal emails (19 percent), personal photographs (22 percent), online dating profiles (16 percent), contact lists (19 percent) and giving permission to access and even edit personal social media profiles (19 percent)
Questionable Behaviours on Wi-Fi
In the case of using public Wi-Fi for more private matters, joining an unsecure network could reveal more about a person’s personal information (or habits) than they bargained for:
31 percent Indians admit to viewing nude, explicit or suggestive content on public Wi-Fi Of those people, 44 percent admit to doing so at work and 49 percent have done so in a hotel, hostel or Airbnb
Almost half (48 percent) of the users have accessed Wi-Fi without the Wi-Fi network owner’s permission; 18 percent guessed or hacked the password to get in96 percent of Indians have potentially put personal information at risk while using public Wi-Fi, including checking their bank accounts, and sharing personal photos and videos. Yet 41 percent reported they would feel horrified if their financial details were stolen and published online by hackers
Wi-Fi Access Also a Must When Travelling Clearly, Indians are unable to resist access to a strong, free Wi-Fi network despite the risks. This is especially true while travelling, as Indians say access to a strong Wi-Fi network is a deciding factor when choosing a hotel (82 percent), transport hub (67 percent), which airline to fly (64 percent) or place to eat (62 percent). Further, more than half (51 percent) of people surveyed globally said that the most important reason to stay connected was to use a GPS app to get around.
Help Ensure Your Personal Information Doesn’t Fall into the Wrong Hands Despite the need for access to a strong, free Wi-Fi connection, there are simple steps consumers can take to help protect their information online:
Use Security Software: One of the best ways to protect your information online is to use a Virtual Private Network (VPN) from a trusted vendor such as Symantec’s Norton Wi-Fi Privacy. VPNs provide a “secure tunnel” that encrypts data being sent and received between your device and the internet.
Norton Wi-Fi Risk Report Methodology
The Norton Wi-Fi Risk Report is an online survey of 15,532 adults ages 18+ who use Wi-Fi across 15 countries: Australia, Brazil, Canada, France, Germany, India, Italy, Japan, Hong Kong, Mexico, Netherlands, New Zealand, UAE, UK and USA. The survey is commissioned by Norton by Symantec and produced by research firm Reputation Leaders through international online panel company Research Now. The margin of error for the total sample is 0.8 percent at a 95 percent confidence level. The Indian sample reflects input from 1,000 Indian adults ages 18+ who use Wi-Fi. The margin of error is 3.1 percent for the total India sample. Data was collected from May 18th to June 5th, 2017 by Research Now.
