As our world becomes more and more digital, we’re putting more personal information into the digital realm than ever. This has proportionally given rise to cyber crimes. Peoples used to care less about online security a few years ago. But this has changed now, and more so in India. A study by global cyber security firm McAfee has revealed that 79% of Indians concern about online security more than they did five years five years ago.
The study, ‘New Security Priorities in An Increasingly Connected World’, also revealed that Indians are more worried about identity theft than anything else. 45% of the Indians studied by McAfee give priority to safeguarding their identity than their connected devices (25%) and privacy (39%).
Though more peoples are concerned about online security now, not many of them have taken any action to actually protect their online data. “Even though consumers are increasingly worried about their security and privacy, we have also observed a disparity between their concern and action,” said Venkat Krishnapur, Vice President, Engineering and Managing Director at McAfee.
According to the study, 50% of consumers have signed up for an identity theft protection solution with 42% planning to start using it. Almost two-third (64%) of the consumers keep track of their online bank and credit card accounts for unauthorised charges for monitoring identity. 38% of the consumers check social media for fraudulent posts and 31% rely on credit monitoring services. When it comes to purchasing connected home devices, 39% Indians ranked security as the most important factor.
In the wake of growing risks of online data thefts, with someone as big as Facebook being in the headlines for all such wrong reasons recently, it is obvious people are more concerned than ever. But in this ever-changing digital world fuelled by volume, speed and complexity, just showing concern is never enough. Consumers should take a proactive approach towards protecting their identities and data.
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