31 percent of all cell phone or tablet users do not have or are unaware of an antivirus solution. Bitdefender study on cybersecurity and online behavior of users in Germany shows deficiencies in mobile security.
The results of the Bitdefender Study 2021 Bitdefender Global Report: Cybersecurity and Online Behaviors * for Germany highlight the risks consumers face in their online mobile behavior. A large number of users in this country who mainly go online with mobile devices use little or no security solutions on these devices for a variety of reasons, or they simply don't know. Of the around 31% of German study participants who did not have an antivirus installed on their mobile smartphone or iOS phone, 24% consider it to be too expensive. 20% assume that it is integrated, 19% think it is not necessary at all. 7 or 5% of the respondents also use their work laptop or mobile phone to go online privately.
Mobile work devices are also used privately
This situation is worrying. Because cyber criminals also know that more and more important and financially relevant activities are taking place on mobile phones in this country. Mobile devices are therefore increasingly being targeted by criminals. They have a large number of goals: 64% of Germans use their Android mobile phones to access the Internet most often, 37% use their iOS mobile phone. 90% of Germans use two mobile devices, 70% even three (see Figure 1). 48 percent mainly use their personal notebook.
Security awareness for mobile devices can be greatly expanded
The security features of mobile hardware seem incomplete and many users do not know which solutions are installed on their device. Almost a third (31%) of all German respondents who go online primarily via a mobile phone or tablet said that they did not use an antivirus solution on their mobile device or were not aware of it - 28% of smartphone owners and 37% of iOS users. It looks a little better for laptop / PC owners. But here, too, 17% of the users in this country, who mainly go online via stationary or mobile PC systems, do not use antivirus solutions or do not know about it. Corresponding to 35% of iPad and 24% of Android tablet users.
Cyber defense applications that go beyond basic virus protection are worse off. Software solutions, apps or data protection services (without VPN) do not use or do not know about 61% of the users who go online, mainly on Android smartphones and 55% of the users who go online mainly on iOS phones. More than one in two - 56% of Android users - gave the same answer about password managers or VPN tools. For Apple phones, the values were 45% (password manager) and 54% (VPN). So-called virtual payment cards are also not yet widespread. These are bank cards in which the user details are only entered via a secure app. 62% of smartphone users, 47% of iOS users and 74% of Windows PC users said “No” or “I don't know” when asked about usage. 48% (Android) and 44% (iOS) do not use a private browser on their mobile phone or cannot say it. All results can be found in Figure 2.
Many supposed reasons not to install mobile security solutions
The arguments why users do not use a security solution on their mobile devices are varied and sometimes surprising. Most frequently mentioned with 24%: The costs for a security solution for mobile devices that are estimated to be too high. Also, many users do not believe that they need a special solution. Because 20% assume that their mobile device has integrated online security and therefore does not need an additional solution. 19% said they simply don't believe the need for a security solution on a mobile device. 14% assume that they do not need security for their activities on mobile phones, 9% think smartphones are not exposed to malware. All the reasons in Figure 3. Multiple answers were possible here.
Go online privately on the employer's mobile devices
The survey also shows that a not insignificant proportion of users use their professional hardware for private activities. 7% of the respondents use their work laptop to privately use platforms, 5% use their work mobile phone. In comparison with the other countries in which the study was carried out, however, German users are cautious about using professional equipment for private purposes.
* Bitdefender Global Report - Cybersecurity and online behavior 2021. The report presents the results of a survey carried out by iSenseSolutions of 10.124 Internet users from eleven countries. As part of the survey in June 2021, 1.005 users were asked in Germany. The study was carried out in Germany, the USA, Great Britain, Australia, Spain, Italy, France, the Netherlands, Sweden, Denmark and Romania. The numbers were weighted in relation to the respective online population of each country. The data was collected and evaluated from June to August 2021.
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