Survey finds Internet security ignorance
By John Vlahovich
Spokane Public Radio
The average Internet surfer has no idea how many times his or her computer is under attack while on line. Quite a few people think those phony requests to update personal information actually come from a bank.
That’s what the AARP found from a recent survey of 800 Washington Internet users.
That request for updated personal information from PayPal certainly looked legitimate to Kennewick resident Judy Malloon. After all, she did have a PayPal account. So she filled in the request for ATM number and security code and emailed it back.
Within 24 hours, Malloon’s bank account had been completely drained.
Washington AARP state director Doug Shadel says Judy Malloon isn’t alone in trusting the emails she receives.
“A huge percentage of the people think that’s a legitimate thing,” says Shadel. “ So we asked the question, for example, do banks ever send you emails asking you to update personal information, and almost 50 percent were not aware of this, that this does not happen.”
AARP surveyed 800 Washington residents and found many web surfers are unaware of the latest online threats from computer hackers and cyber thieves. In fact most grossly underestimate how often hackers try to get into their computer files. For the record, Shadel says it’s an average of 300 times an hour.
“When we asked in our survey, how many times per hour you think your computer’s attacked, the average was about 20,” he says. “So people are grossly underestimating the threats to them when they’re on line.”
Shadel says part of the problem is that technology has gotten so sophisticated so fast; the average person hasn’t been able to keep up.
AARP announced its survey results in Spokane at the first of a number of cyber crime seminars it has scheduled statewide to raise awareness of dangers in cyberspace. A second Spokane session will be held April 12th.
People can pre-register on-line at aarp.org/wa.
Spokane Public Radio
The average Internet surfer has no idea how many times his or her computer is under attack while on line. Quite a few people think those phony requests to update personal information actually come from a bank.
That’s what the AARP found from a recent survey of 800 Washington Internet users.
That request for updated personal information from PayPal certainly looked legitimate to Kennewick resident Judy Malloon. After all, she did have a PayPal account. So she filled in the request for ATM number and security code and emailed it back.
Within 24 hours, Malloon’s bank account had been completely drained.
Washington AARP state director Doug Shadel says Judy Malloon isn’t alone in trusting the emails she receives.
“A huge percentage of the people think that’s a legitimate thing,” says Shadel. “ So we asked the question, for example, do banks ever send you emails asking you to update personal information, and almost 50 percent were not aware of this, that this does not happen.”
AARP surveyed 800 Washington residents and found many web surfers are unaware of the latest online threats from computer hackers and cyber thieves. In fact most grossly underestimate how often hackers try to get into their computer files. For the record, Shadel says it’s an average of 300 times an hour.
“When we asked in our survey, how many times per hour you think your computer’s attacked, the average was about 20,” he says. “So people are grossly underestimating the threats to them when they’re on line.”
Shadel says part of the problem is that technology has gotten so sophisticated so fast; the average person hasn’t been able to keep up.
AARP announced its survey results in Spokane at the first of a number of cyber crime seminars it has scheduled statewide to raise awareness of dangers in cyberspace. A second Spokane session will be held April 12th.
People can pre-register on-line at aarp.org/wa.