77% of Consumers Never Check for Data Leaks, New Study Reveals

Cybercrime has become an unfortunately common occurrence these days, but in spite of the fact that this is the case the vast majority of British citizens don’t seem to be taking it all that seriously. In a recent report that was released by F-Secure, a cybersecurity firm, it was revealed that 7 million Brits had their account details and other forms of private and personal information stolen from them.

With all of that having been said and now out of the way, it is important to note that as many as 77% of Brits never check to see if their data has been leaked. This means that a considerable proportion of people living in the British isles are less aware of the safety of their data than might have been the case otherwise.

Such a trend is dangerous because of the fact that this is the sort of thing that could potentially end up leading them to assume that they are secure even if their data has already fallen into the wrong hands. Fraudsters have managed to obtain nearly $1.5 billion in stolen funds from these innocent victims in 2022 alone, and unless steps are taken to better educate Brits about the risks of failing to take responsibility for their safety this trend will undoubtedly get worse before it gets better.

With around $2,800 getting stolen every minute based on the numbers from 2022, it is becoming increasingly important to provide information to consumers with all things having been considered and taken into account. The Dark Web has become a treasure trove of stolen data, and oftentimes the leaks that allow these data to exchange hands fly completely under the radar.

Following basic security protocols can help to curb the impact of these leaks. Consumers can quickly change their passwords in the event of a leak, and creating a secure password that contains enough unique characters is also a good place to start. Users should also consider adding two factor authentication so that they can avail an extra layer of protection from malicious actors around the world.


Photo: Vecstock/freepik

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