According to a Norton Cyber Safety Insights report, about 45 percent of adult internet users in India faced identity theft in some way or the other in 2020.
Indians are amongst the most targeted groups in the world in terms of cyber threats. Norton claims that the threats that adult Indian internet users faced has increased by 40 percent since 2019.
59 percent of adult Indian internet users faced cybercrime through 2020. While it is not clear as to the stipulated financial cost incurred as a result of cyber-attacks, Norton stated that Indians spent a total of 1.3 billion hours collectively attempting to resolve cybercrime crises, which means an average of 36.7 hours per person throughout the year. About 2.7 crore Indians are believed to have faced identity threats in 2020. Added a media report.
“Many Indian consumers are taking proactive steps to safeguard their data, but two in every five still feel it is impossible to protect their privacy in this age – or say they don’t know how to do so. It is therefore crucial for consumers to seek expert advice and take active measures to safeguard their online privacy,” said Ritesh Chopra, Norton LifeLock’s director of sales, India and SAARC.
The report further underlined the impact remote working has had on cyber security, Norton claims a number of 70 percent of all adult users projected in the initial months of the COVID-19 pandemic as a side effect of users living without an enterprise grade security.
Since the beginning of the pandemic and even earlier, the cases of cyber-attacks have been a matter of concern for many. Phone scams and phishing emails have been on a rise and with people adopting a remote working environment due to the pandemic cyber breaches have become easier. In the current situation, it becomes important for people and organisations to understand the importance of cyber security and the possible threats.
