Some would give up sex for cybersecurity
17 November, 2016
category: Corporate, Digital ID, Financial
Would you give up sex for a year if it meant you didn’t have to worry about being hacked, having your identity stolen, account breached or any other cybersecurity woes? Some 39% of those surveyed say they would, according to an online survey among over 2,000 U.S. adults conducted by Harris Poll on behalf of Dashlane, a provider of online identity and password management.
Dashlane posits that the best defense moving forward is strong passwords but consumers have yet to take that to heart. Almost half — 45% of Americans — have either trusted someone with – or been entrusted with – a password, with email (23%) and streaming services (21%) leading the list. People are most protective of passwords tied to their purse strings. The least shared passwords include those for retail accounts (14%), banking (9%), and insurance provider accounts (6%).
Younger Americans are consistently more trusting/trusted than older Americans – 64% of millennials admit to sharing or receiving passwords — versus 37% of those over the age of 35.
Women are more likely than men to sacrifice a year of sex in exchange for online peace of mind — 44% vs. 34% of men. Two in five millennials (43%) say they’d also give up sex for online security.
While strong passwords — unique and random strings of letters and numbers — are a solution, Americans are still using some old tries and true methods. Almost a third (31%) have used a pet’s name, while over two in 10 each have used number sequences (23%), a family member’s name (22%), or a birthday (21%).
Nearly one in 10 each have used anniversaries (9%), sports teams (9%), addresses (9%) or phone numbers (8%).
The consequences of a data breach can be far reaching and not only impact the consumer but the organization.
Whether from time-intensive account resets, abandoned online purchases, or, worst of all, a data breach, consumers and organizations alike can suffer the consequences of password fatigue.
Most Americans admit needing help accessing online accounts: eight in 10 (81%) have asked for assistance — hints, security questions, password resets, etc. — to access any of their accounts or apps before, and more than six in ten (62%) needed a helping hand multiple times a year. What’s more, nearly one in four (23%) people seek help at least once a month.
Over a third of Americans (36%) say they’ve abandoned an online transaction in the past when they couldn’t remember a password, a likely pain point for online retailers.
Sex isn’t the only thing people would give up to save on cybersecurity headaches. Four in 10 people (41%) would rather give up their favorite food for a month than go through the password reset process for all their online accounts.
This survey was conducted online within the United States by Harris Poll on behalf of Dashlane from October 26-28, 2016 among 2,007 U.S. adults ages 18 and older.