Privacy: we know what to do; we just don't do it?

The latest National Privacy Test results reveal that while the public says they are worried about their privacy in practice, they apply very poor cybersecurity habits.

Habits; that's the problem.

NordVPN surveyed 24,311 people from 197 countries, and there was kind of good news. Its National Privacy Test is designed to evaluate how people in different countries understand online security and privacy issues. In addition, it looks at internet users' digital habits, digital privacy awareness, and digital risk tolerance.

And the results were sort of good news because they were better than last year. The global score is 66 points out of 100, compared to 64 last year.

Alas, there appears to be a void between understanding what needs to be done and actually doing it. NordVPN Daniel Markuson explained: "Despite knowing well how to assess and react to online threats (84/100) and how to stay safe online (72/100), when it comes to habits, the score is 48 points out of 100."

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He said: "Even though people seem to know the theory of how to stay secure online, users all around the world don't practice what they preach and still maintain very poor cybersecurity habits."

He explained further: "It appears that only 37 per cent managed their app permission in a proper way and paid attention to giving out only the most necessary information. 33 per cent knew how social media privacy settings work and what should and should not be shared online. Overall, only 58 per cent were taking their privacy seriously with using tools to become more private online, creating strong passwords, and keeping general digital hygiene."

Daniel Markuson concluded: "NordVPN's research shows that, while most of us know some things about staying private online, we do not put them in action. Most often, people think that they are doing enough and don't evaluate the threat objectively. So, bringing more awareness to the importance of cybersecurity and educating yourself and the people around you is the only way to boost the worldwide National Privacy Test rating next year," says.

NordVPN suggested that "bad online habits put the world's privacy in danger."

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League table

NordVPN also compared results across countries. Germany came up top; the US was second. The UK and Australia saw the biggest improvement over last year, but the Netherlands, France, Ireland and Italy all saw their overall score decrease from last year.