Kaspersky Lab has discovered that despite the use of popular social media platforms continuing to rise, three quarters of Europeans consider such sites unsafe.
Worryingly, despite this, 17% of Brits openly admit to over-sharing information on these platforms.
Over-sharing of information on social platforms can leave consumers vulnerable to criminal activity such as profile hacking and identity theft.
In response to the growing risk to consumers, Kaspersky Lab is launching its latest consumer product, Kaspersky Internet Security – Multi-Device, which keeps consumers secure when accessing the web from a laptop, desktop, smartphone or tablet.
Most of us (73% of Europeans) now use more than one device to access social networks, even though an overwhelming three quarters consider social media to be unsafe, according to Kaspersky Lab.
Its international survey of consumers found that as many as 17% of Brits confess to "sharing more than I probably should" on social media, leaving them at risk of losing valuable personal data to cyber criminals intent on identity theft and other crimes.
A growing social security risk is individual account hacking and then targeting the personal data of the victim’s contacts. Four in ten Brits can’t tell when an online friend’s account has been hacked – so it is not surprising that one in six has been stung into clicking on a dangerous link in a hacked account. Without adequate protection, the more you post, the more vulnerable you are.
"The average household in Western Europe has more than five internet-connected devices, including two smartphones or tablets, and these mobile devices have become the new standard tool for browsing, interacting and shopping online," said David Emm, senior security researcher at Kaspersky Lab.
"However, despite using these devices to access the same internet as traditional computers, many users don’t think they require the same fully-fledged protection. Mobile devices – especially those without security protection – are increasingly attractive targets for online criminals."
In response to the growing risk, Kaspersky Lab is launching a new multi-device version of Kaspersky Internet Security. The security software provides real-time protection for multiple Windows PCs, Macs, and Android smartphones and tablets, all with a single licence.
Key features of Kaspersky Internet Security – Multi-Device include Safe Money, Automatic Exploit Prevention (to stop the criminals reaching you through weaknesses in popular programmes), ZETA Shield (designed to scan incoming emails and the attachments they contain) and a ‘Trusted Applications’ mode, to protect financial and personal data on all internet-connected devices.
