Did you know 35 Percent of US Adults Use a VPN but Only One out of Three Know What it Does, Studies Reveal!
There has been a noticeable increase in search queries related to VPN (Virtual Private Network) deals and discounts. Reportedly, US internet users have started taking matters such as online security and privacy very seriously.
A survey of 1,666 US adults (conducted prior to the emergence of COVID-19) and an additional 1,834 US adults (conducted in February 2021) was carried out by CouponFollow, a coupon engine established in New York. The purpose of these studies was to figure out how Americans perceive their online security and privacy.
The results revealed that about 69% of participants are cautious about their data security while using a public internet connection. Moreover, about 64% are concerned about the same when their devices are connected to their home network.
65% said that they have a fear that their ISP might sell sensitive data such as their medical and financial information.
As for online privacy, nearly 47% of US adults show concern while using a public internet connection and 30% are worried even when their devices are connected to their home network.
When it came to cybercrimes, over 35% of the participants said they know someone, including them, who has had their social media account compromised. This percentage rose to 48% in the case of Millennials.
Back in October 2020, the Marriot hotel chain was handed a hefty fine by the UK’s data privacy watchdog for a breach that could have given cybercriminals access to the data of over 339 million guests.
About 52% of Millennials and Gen Z claimed to have had their password stolen or know someone who experienced the same.
Since Baby Boomers spend considerably less time online than the generations that followed them, only 12% of them reported to have had their password stolen and just 20% stated that their social media account was hacked.
And even though 35% of Americans use a VPN, one-third of them don’t even know what it does. Also, men are more likely to be familiar with the applications of a VPN. But nearly half of the Baby Boomers (49%) and 40% of active VPN users have yet to learn the meaning of VPN.
Interestingly, the respondents noted that they consider accessing the internet via work gadgets safer. This confidence may be due to the security layers guarding the workplace devices. In such circumstances, only one in three (32%) are concerned about their security and one in five (18%) are worried about their privacy.
Coming back to VPN, it was revealed in the survey results that around 12% of the US adults started using a VPN last year and 21% activated one so they can work from home without worrying about any of the aforementioned risks.
Browsing (45%), work (45%), and online shopping (21%) are the main reasons why one out of three Americans (35%) use a VPN.
It goes without saying that lately, there has been a significant surge in data breach attempts. Therefore, internet users not only in the US but across the world must be concerned about their online security and privacy. If you don’t want to get your data compromised, you have to be very careful while using the internet.
