UK smartphone owners not worried about cyber attacks

A new survey by 360 Security has revealed that people in the UK view their smartphones as just a phone, and that they aren’t worried that cyber-criminals could be targeting their handheld devices.

The survey says that 81 percent of consumers in the UK don’t consider their smartphone en a target for cyber-criminals, and hence they’re also not aware what sort of attacks they may be vulnerable to.

Most of those polled, at 61 percent, also aren’t worried about data loss and theft. Only nine percent of people said they were worried about cyber-attacks, but 28 percent said they have no concerns at all.

Of those people who are aware of the risks, most of them already have anti-virus measures on their PC at 92 percent, but only 43 percent have put the same safeguards in place on their phone.

73 percent states they believe cyber-criminals would target computers first, with just 19 percent saying their smartphone could be a target.

“Consumers are now pretty savvy about computer security, but what we tend to forget is that our phones are mini computers and contain access to personal and financial information which can be very valuable to a criminal”, said Jean-Baptiste Carpentier, security specialist at 360 Security.

“The truth is, smartphones are at greater risk from cyber-attack as they are used more frequently and widely than laptops and desktop computers, they connect with unsecure Wi-Fi and are often unprotected. Criminals will exploit this lack of awareness and security”, he added.

According to 360 Security, ransomware is one of the most rapidly-growing threats to our smartphones. Unfortunately, only six percent of those taking part in the survey expressed any fear about this kind of malware.