Blackphone 2 aims to protect private citizens from hacking, vacuuming, and chipping away their privacy. (Photo : Twitter)
More people are becoming worried about their online security because of all the news and reports regarding hackers trying to steal passwords and the government snooping on citizen's activities on the Internet.
The National Telecommunications and Information Administration conducted a survey involving about 41,000 households. They found out that nearly 50 percent of all the homes they surveyed said that they have tried to minimize their online activities in fear of being monitored by the government or other malicious entities on the web.
It is no secret that the Internet can be full of traps that could lead to a person's sensitive data being compromised. There have already been a lot of massive data breaches even in large companies.
People seem to think that they themselves are not safe from such hackers. The recent revelations from former NSA contractor Edward Snowden regarding the government's spying on people does not seem to help either.
The survey also showed that 29 percent have steered away from online finances, Engadget has learned. About 26 percent even stopped or avoided shopping online.
Most online shoppers usually need to enter in their credit card details in order for them to complete the transaction. However, not every site is safe and others could be just phishing attempts.
"NTIA's analysis of recent data shows that Americans are increasingly concerned about online security and privacy at a time when data breaches, cybersecurity incidents, and controversies over the privacy of online services have become more prominent," the NTIA's report said.
Some of the people surveyed were afraid of fraud while others were cautious of having their identity stolen. About 23 percent were afraid of having their data scraped without their consent.
The NTIA now believes that there is an increasing "mistrust" of people regarding how secure the Internet really is. People are afraid of what others may do if they find them online.
Researchers from the NTIA recommends that the government of the United States should impose regulations that would help build up the people's trust again. Encryption should be supported by the government as it would help protect its people online.
