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Americans dropped to 3rd place in the world in terms of cybersecurity knowledge

August 13, 2024

Study shows that the world’s online privacy and cybersecurity awareness continue to worsen

  • Compared to last year, Americans dropped from 2nd to 3rd place in the global ranking. .

  • People in the US know nothing about privacy issues when using AI for work.

  • Compared to 2023, less Americans understand the security benefits of updating apps.

Americans are 3rd in the world in terms of cybersecurity and internet privacy knowledge, according to new research by the cybersecurity company NordVPN. They excelled at dealing with suspicious streaming service offers (96%), but struggled to identify the privacy issues of using AI at work (5%).

The annual National Privacy Test (NPT) is a global survey aimed to evaluate people’s cybersecurity, online privacy awareness, and educate the general public about cyber threats and the importance of data and information security in the digital age. It gathered 25,567 responses from 181 countries this year.

"As the digital threat landscape evolves faster than ever, it is important that internet users understand the significance of safeguarding their personal information. The National Privacy Test takes the responsibility to educate people globally about cyber threats and equip them with essential tips to protect against fraud, data harvesting, surveillance, and other online dangers," says Marijus Briedis, chief technology officer (CTO) at NordVPN.

These countries rank in the top three for internet privacy and cybersecurity awareness:

  1. 1.

    Singapore (62/100)

  2. 2.

    Finland and Lithuania (61/100)

  3. 3.

    Germany and the United States (60/100)

However, this year’s results showed that the world's online privacy and cybersecurity awareness continue declining over the last few years.

“Technological advancements might be overwhelming for some people, which may make them struggle to keep up. Convenience-driven online applications become more ingrained in our daily lives, and people often prioritize ease of use over privacy, unintentionally exposing themselves to risks. Even though it's concerning to see a decline in global internet privacy awareness, this trend only confirms the growing need for more education in protecting our personal data online,” says Briedis.

Americans deal well with suspicious service offers but fail with privacy issues related to AI

The results of the test showed that Americans are good at dealing with suspicious streaming service offers (96%), and creating strong passwords (95%). They also know how devices might get infected with malware (93%) and which permissions to give to different apps (91%), or which sensitive data to avoid sharing on social media (90%).

However, only 5% of Americans are knowledgeable about what privacy issues to consider when using AI for work, and only 15% know what data ISPs collect as part of the metadata as well as where to store passwords safely. Additionally, Americans are also unaware (16%) of how to secure their home Wi-Fi network, most likely considering it safe by default. Finally, only 27% of Americans know online tools that protect digital privacy.

Among the Americans, 1% of them are Cyber Wanderers (barely know anything about internet privacy and cybersecurity), while the biggest proportion (68%) scored 50-74 points and were identified as Cyber Adventurers, someone who knows quite a lot about but still has room for improvement. The number of knowledgeable Cyber Stars in the US fell by 4% this year.

What are the key changes among Americans’ results since last year?

Compared to 2023, less Americans understand the security benefits of updating apps as soon as the update is available. While in 2023, 66% said they update an app as soon as an update is available, this year, it’s 54%. However, more Americans are aware of how to deal with phishing attacks (62% in 2023 vs. 68% in 2024).

Additionally, US participants have the best NPT, Privacy awareness, and Digital risk scores among English-speaking countries. Compared to participants from other countries, US participants know best which common scams are being carried out using AI technology.

People ages 30-54 are best at global internet privacy awareness

The global NPT score hit 58% this year, which shows the decrease in the world’s online privacy and cybersecurity awareness, compared to 2023 (61%) and 2022 (64%).

Key global takeaways:

  • People ages 30-54 have the best cybersecurity skills, with most Cyber Stars in this age group.

  • Together with the IT sector, respondents from the financial industries got slightly higher NPT scores than others.

  • The “privacy awareness” and “digital risk tolerance” categories’ scores are lower than in 2023 due to two new questions about AI — only 5% of people answered them correctly.

“Nowadays, individuals are more focused on immediate benefits rather than long-term security, and this shift might have resulted in a decrease in privacy awareness. Additionally, as people navigate through vast amounts of content, important security alerts and privacy tips often get lost in the noise,” says Briedis.

Steps to increase the online security and privacy

In celebration of International VPN Day on August 19, Marijus Briedis from NordVPN shares a series of steps people can take to enhance their online privacy and security:

  1. 1.

    Create unique and strong passwords. Use unique and robust passwords for each of your online accounts. Additionally, use a password manager and if available, set up a passkey login for your accounts.

  2. 2.

    Enable multi-factor authentication (MFA). Strengthen your account security by enabling multi-factor authentication. This adds an extra layer of protection by requiring an additional form of verification.

  3. 3.

    Keep your software up to date. Regularly update your software, operating systems, and applications. It helps to fix vulnerabilities and ensure that security patches are applied.

  4. 4.

    Use a virtual private network (VPN). Always use a VPN to encrypt your internet connection, safeguarding your personal information from potential eavesdroppers.

  5. 5.

    Review privacy settings. Regularly review and adjust privacy settings on social media platforms, mobile apps, and other online services.

  6. 6.

    Educate yourself about cybersecurity. Continuous learning will empower you to make informed decisions about protecting your online presence.

Methodology: The National Privacy Test is an open-access survey, allowing anyone from around the world to take the test and compare their own results with the global ones. In 2024, 25,567 respondents from 181 countries answered 23 questions that evaluated their online privacy skills and knowledge. The 2024 data is analyzed as of 07/17/2023 and presented in the report. If there is a difference with the webpage results, it means more people participated since July 17 and the result has slightly changed. Additionally, the analysis of 2023 takes into consideration the full 2023 data. Last year’s communication analyzed only the interim results up to July 19, 2023.

ABOUT NORDVPN

NordVPN is the world’s most advanced VPN service provider, chosen by millions of internet users worldwide. The service offers features such as dedicated IP, Double VPN, and Onion Over VPN servers, which help to boost your online privacy with zero tracking. One of NordVPN’s key features is Threat Protection Pro, a tool that blocks malicious websites, trackers, and ads and scans downloads for malware. The latest creation of Nord Security, NordVPN’s parent company, is Saily — a global eSIM service. NordVPN is known for being user friendly and can offer some of the best prices on the market. This VPN provider has over 6800 servers covering 111 countries worldwide. For more information, visit https://nordvpn.com.