National Privacy Test: The U.K. and Ireland stay mid-table in global rankings

About the National Privacy Test

The National Privacy Test (NPT) is an international survey that measures how well people understand internet security and online privacy. The test includes 22 questions covering three areas: daily digital habits, privacy awareness, and cybersecurity threats.

This year, more than 30,000 people from 185 countries took the test to check their cyber hygiene. To make global comparisons meaningful, the analysis focuses on 31 countries with the largest number of responses, each with at least 100 participants. This approach reveals not only how individuals scored but also how nations differ in their online safety knowledge.

Each country receives a National Privacy Test (NPT) score based on participant performance across the three categories. Participants are also grouped into four distinct “cyber personas” that reflect their level of cybersecurity awareness, from the least to the most knowledgeable.

Before looking at this year’s results, let’s outline how NPT scores are calculated and what the cyber personas mean.

How we calculate the scores

The National Privacy Test score shows how well a person understands online privacy and cybersecurity. To calculate it, we look at three separate areas:

• Daily digital life – how people handle their information, like passwords, app updates, data-sharing, and app permissions.
• Privacy awareness – how well they recognize risks such as scams, phishing attempts, or how companies collect personal data.
• Digital risk tolerance – how cautious they are when faced with risky online situations.

The test has 22 questions in total, and each one is worth 4.5% of the score. We calculate the NPT score by taking the average of the three category scores. The more correct answers a person gives in each category, the higher their final NPT score will be.

What are cyber personas?

To make the results easier to understand, everyone who takes the test lands in one of four “cyber personas.” Each represents a different level of knowledge and awareness:

• Cyber Wanderer (1-24%). Cyber Wanderers have very little knowledge about online safety. They often don’t know how to protect their accounts, devices, or data.
• Cyber Tourist (25-49%). Cyber Tourists know a bit more, but still make common mistakes. They may recognize some threats but not know how to respond to them.
• Cyber Adventurer (50-74%). Cyber Adventurers understand most everyday privacy and security issues. They know how to protect themselves in many situations, but they still have room to improve.
• Cyber Star (75-100%). Cyber Stars are the most knowledgeable. They are highly aware of online risks, understand how to protect their data, and follow safe digital habits.

What do the numbers show?

The U.K. held 5th place again in 2025, showing steady performance compared to last year. Ireland stayed closer to the global average (12th), still struggling to move up. 

Key takeaways

The 2025 National Privacy Test shows a steady performance from the U.K., while Ireland remained closer to the middle of the pack. Together, they illustrate two different stories: 

• The U.K.’s overall score (58) kept it in the global top five, with especially strong results in digital risk (67, 3rd place). Ireland, by contrast, finished with an overall score of 56, putting it in 12th place — just below the global average.
• Up to 96% of the U.K. participants knew how to create strong passwords, and 95% could handle suspicious streaming offers. They also led globally in recognizing phishing websites and identifying malware infections.
• However, the U.K.’s daily digital life score (53) remains weak, with too few participants practicing safe routines like updating apps and securely storing passwords.
• Ireland’s weak spots mirrored these issues. Only 19% knew where to store passwords safely, and only a small number recognized the value of updates.
• Ireland also struggled with breach response, scoring among the lowest when asked what to do after a service provider leak.
• On the bright side, Irish participants improved their understanding of AI-related privacy issues, showing progress in newer areas of digital security.

Overall, the U.K. continues to hold its place among the top performers thanks to strong phishing and malware awareness, while Ireland remains behind in everyday security habits and shows only small signs of progress.

Cyber personas in the U.K. and Ireland

The U.K. sits slightly above the global average with 11% Cyber Stars, showing a solid base of top performers. Most British participants (66%) are Cyber Adventurers, while 22% are Cyber Tourists and 1% are Cyber Wanderers. Ireland, however, has fewer Cyber Stars (9%) and more Cyber Tourists (24%), with 65% Adventurers and 1% Wanderers. Together, the results show the U.K. pulling ahead while Ireland leans more toward the middle.

Biggest changes since 2024

For the U.K. and Ireland, 2025 brought more stability than progress. One year isn’t enough to reset habits, but the data shows where both countries are stuck.

The U.K.’s overall score remained at 58, unchanged from last year, and so did daily digital life (53) and privacy awareness (54). Digital risk score declined by 1% (from 68 to 67). The lack of growth suggests that British participants have kept their strengths (phishing and malware) but aren’t improving in weaker areas.

Ireland’s overall score increased slightly to 56, but beneath that surface were more small changes. More Irish participants recognized privacy risks when using AI at work, marking a step forward in emerging challenges. However, no progress was made in password storage, app updates, or breach response.

An overview of global results

This year’s National Privacy Test shows that global privacy and cybersecurity awareness is holding steady, but not improving. The worldwide NPT score in 2025 was 57 out of 100, the same as last year. 

The details reveal mixed progress. The daily digital life score continues to creep upward by about one percentage point a year, showing that people are slowly improving their everyday online habits. But at the same time, privacy awareness and digital risk tolerance are declining, suggesting that while individuals may be getting better at routines like managing passwords or permissions, they are less prepared for growing threats.

As in previous years, participants did best on basic practices: creating strong passwords (96% correct), handling suspicious streaming service offers (95%), knowing which data to share with apps (94%), and understanding which sensitive data should not be posted on social media (90%). Many also recognized how devices can get infected with malware.

The weakest results came from newer and more technical areas. Only 6% of participants knew the privacy issues to consider when using AI for work. Knowledge of what ISPs collect as part of metadata, how to secure home Wi-Fi, where to safely store passwords, and which online tools protect privacy also remained very low.

“AI has raised the stakes online, but the fundamentals of staying safe haven’t changed. People are getting better at spotting scams, yet too many still skip updates or reuse passwords, and those small gaps are exactly what criminals exploit,” says Marijus Briedis, chief technology officer (CTO) at NordVPN.

He adds: “The test aims to educate people worldwide about cyber threats and offer clear, practical guidance to reduce the risks of fraud, data harvesting, surveillance, and other online threats.”

Globally, the overall picture of cyber personas did not change from 2024 — one in ten participants is a Cyber Star. The highest scores came from people aged 30–54 and those working in IT. The lowest scores were seen among students, retirees, and people employed in hospitality or construction.

Think you’d score higher? Take the National Privacy Test and see how your knowledge stacks up. And if you’re curious about the full picture, check the global results for all countries in the 2025 NPT report.

The biggest global shifts

Compared to last year, a few changes stand out:

• AI-driven scams are better recognized. Awareness jumped by five percentage points (from 63% in 2024 to 68% in 2025). More people now understand how cybercriminals use AI to trick victims, making this one of the strongest improvements of the year.
• Privacy tools are gaining traction. Understanding of online tools that protect digital privacy rose from 27% in 2024 to 32% in 2025. While still a low number overall, this 5-point increase shows that awareness of solutions like VPNs, password managers, and encrypted services is slowly spreading.
• App permissions are better understood. Knowledge of which data to share with apps increased by 3 points (from 91% to 94%). This steady improvement suggests more users are learning to limit access and protect their personal information.
• Updates remain overlooked. Awareness of the security benefits of updating apps as soon as possible dropped another 2 points (from 56% to 54%). This decline confirms a continuing trend — many users still underestimate the role of updates in preventing hacks and fixing vulnerabilities.

Methodology

The National Privacy Test is an open-access survey available to anyone online. It does not use quotas for age, gender, or background and is therefore not nationally representative.

In 2025, 30,792 people completed the test, up from 25,567 in 2024 and 30,747 in 2023. The numbers in this blog reflect responses collected up to July 31, 2025. If the results on the NPT website look slightly different, that’s because more people have taken the test since then.