A survey conducted by non-governmental organization Internet Society of China has revealed on Wednesday, July 22, that Chinese netizens have lost over 80 billion yuan ($13 billion) this year due to personal information leaks and online fraud, the Global Times reported.
The survey, undertaken from May 15 to June 15 on 16,925 netizens, found that 7 percent of netizens had lost over 1,000 yuan on average in the past year.
According to the survey, 78.2 percent of the respondents said that their personal information, such as their name, home address and ID number, was leaked, while 63.4 percent said that their online activities, including their call logs, online shopping records and IP address, were also exposed.
The survey also showed that nearly 82 percent of Web users said that their lives have been affected by the leak of their personal information, while about 50 percent said that the situation is getting more serious.
More than 76 percent of netizens said that they had been misled by false websites that posed as bank, Internet companies and TV stations and offered them prizes, while over 50 percent said that they had received messages from senders posing as China Mobile or China Construction Bank or phone calls claiming to be from health bureaus or public security.
The survey also found that over 70 percent of netizens said that they were unable to block advertising websites, did not know where the computer or cell phone applications came from and could not delete pre-installed software.
According to the survey, most netizens said that they came across fraudulent websites, uncovered fake reviews while shopping online and got messages that later contained viruses such as Trojans or unwanted messages like porn.
Last year, Chinese actress Tang Wei, the star in Ang Lee's "Lust, Caution," was a victim of a telecom fraud case, in which she lost 210,000 yuan to a suspected scammer.