Despite Facebook’s Cambridge Analytica scandal, the Equifax data breach, and story after story of internet hacking, a new survey shows that Americans are actually less concerned about online security and privacy risks than they were in 2015.
That’s according to new Census Bureau data released today by the technology policy arm of the U.S. Commerce Department.
According to the data, the number of households reporting privacy and security concerns fell from 84% in 2015 to 73% in the fall of 2017. And in 2017, just 33% said privacy concerns stopped them from doing certain online activities, like posting on social media or making purchases online, down from 45% in 2015. That is despite the fact that 20% said they had experienced an online security breach, identity theft, or a similar crime during the past year.
While the idea of identity theft still freaks people out (57% of online households cited identify theft as a major privacy or security concern in 2017) that number has decreased from 2015 when 63% of the online population was worried about identity theft.
That said, online users are just as concerned as ever about credit card or bank fraud, data collection by online services, loss of control over personal information, and other concerns of these modern times, with the rate staying nearly level between 2015 and 2017. Even if internet hacking isn’t your biggest concern, go change your passwords and use two-step authorization.
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