How do computer users around the world view online security risks? A survey* commissioned by F-Secure in Finland, Germany, Malaysia, Poland, Sweden, the UK and the United States reveals some interesting international variations in people’s experiences and perceptions of the threats.

Asked how concerned they are about their online privacy and data security, Germans (77 percent) and Malaysians (73 percent) expressed the most concern, while the Swedes (42 percent) and Finns (36 percent) appeared to be the least concerned — or the most confident about their online life.

An average of 49 percent of respondents across the seven countries said they have been hit by malware in the past 12 months, but that their security software had notified them and prevented infection. The most malware hits were reported by Poland (70 percent), Finland (60 percent) and Malaysia (54 percent), with Germany (32 percent) reporting the lowest figures. Poland (14 percent) and Malaysia (11 percent) had the most respondents without any anti-virus protection on their computers that have been infected by malware.

Sean Sullivan, security advisor at F-Secure, said, “Germany seems to combine a high level of worry with a low level of exposure to the actual threats. Caution is good when surfing the web, but being overly concerned may also prevent people from experiencing the full benefits of the web. There is also a learning curve, as people become exposed to threats, they also learn how to deal with new situations and become more confident and less concerned.”

International variation
The survey results also show that many computer users around the world are still unsure about security issues. For example, many people across the countries surveyed — Sweden (38 percent), United States (34 percent), UK (33 percent), and Germany (32 percent) — did not know if their computers were infected.

There is also wide variation in how concerned people are about specific types of malware attacks. Germans (65 percent) and Malaysians (59 percent) were the most concerned about downloading malware from a website, compared to just 22 percent of respondents in Finland. The risk of poisoned search results, which criminals use to lead people to malicious websites, was taken most seriously by the Germans (62 percent) and the British (41 percent).

According to the survey, credit card crime is the most prevalent in the United States, where 32 percent of the respondents personally experienced it or knew someone who has been a victim. Malaysia (27 percent) and UK (27 percent) also reported a relatively high level of credit card crime, while the lowest incidence was in Poland (11 percent) and Finland (12 percent).

Security terminology remains a mystery
An average of seven percent of respondents in the seven countries did not know what malicious code or malware was, with the highest scores occurring in the UK (12 percent), United States (12 percent) and Malaysia (9 percent). A significant proportion of Americans (29 percent) and the British (28 percent) were not aware what poisoned search results were. Rogue ware, such as the bogus security products that take computers hostage and fool people into making payments to remove fictitious malware, was a term only understood in Sweden and Poland.

Free online tools
F-Secure provides useful free tools to check whether your computer is fully protected or infected with malware. F-Secure Health Check gives you a comprehensive report on the health of your computer and suggests ways to fix any security problems. http://www.f-secure.com/en_US/security/security-center/health-check/

The best way to stay safe on the Internet and to keep your computer free of problems is to have an up-to-date security solution. A free trial of F-Secure Internet Security is available at http://www.f-secure.com/en_US/downloads

*The survey was commissioned by F-Secure and conducted by Zoomerang in May 2010 in Finland, Germany, Malaysia, Poland, Sweden, UK and United States with 1,450 respondents.
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