Cybersecurity survey: Security Barometer

Security online is a major concern for many people in the Nordics

Nordic people reflect a lot on their safety online and more than one out of ten (one out of eight in Sweden) have been exposed to data breaches and hacker attempts within the last three years.

We continue to have high confidence in how authorities handle personal data. On the flip side, trust in the management of personal data by private companies is decreasing quite significantly in Norway and Sweden. These are some of the findings in the Security Barometer 2022.

The Security Barometer 2022 reveal that security online is a big concern for people in the Nordics. Approximately 65% of the people in the survey state that they reflect on digital security to a large extent. 11% of the participants claim that they have been exposed to data breaches within the last three years.

The good news is that trust in governmental handling of personal data remains high. Citizens in Finland have the highest level of trust, where nine out of ten, 87 per cent, state they are confident in how personal data is handled. In Sweden, the corresponding proportion is eight out of ten, 78 per cent and in Norway, it is seven out of ten, 69 per cent. In addition, people in all three countries are less reluctant to share data for the purpose of improving public services.

However, when it comes to trust in how private companies handle personal data, the trust is lower and has declined in Sweden and Norway.

Every second inhabitant in Sweden and Finland, 47 per cent, feels unsafe with how companies handle their personal data. In Norway as many as six out of ten, 62 per cent, feel unsafe. The decrease in Norway, compared to two years ago, is 13 percentage points.

The Security Barometer also reveals that the fear of being hacked when shopping online is increasing significantly in all three countries. The concern is particularly high in Finland, where six out of ten, 57 per cent, state that they are worried when shopping online. In Norway, concern is increasing the most, from one in ten in 2020 to four out of ten in 2022.

Other questions raised in the survey relate to passwords, identification methods and peoples’ views on who carries the major responsibility for security on the internet.

Read more in the summary of findings.

Commentary to the survey from Maria Nordgren, Head of Cybersecurity Services at Tietoevry:

“I’m happy to see that the fast digitalization of public services, partly caused by the pandemic, has not compromised the security of the services. A high trust in authorities’ management of personal data paves way for secure digitalization in the Nordics.

However, the declining trust in the way companies handle personal data is a serious matter and risks damaging business opportunities, especially for small and medium-sized enterprises. A high level of trust among the public is crucial for successful digitalization.

Data is a resource that can and should be shared if it is done in a way that is transparent and understandable to users. The Security Barometer shows that companies need to improve their ability to demonstrate how collected data is used. Transparency is essential for increasing consumers’ confidence.”

Local press releases

Finnish

In the digital world, Finns trust authorities clearly more than companies, consumer digital skills also need further efforts

The Finns' digital trust in authorities has remained high: 87% consider authorities as reliable processors of personal data. Furthermore, data collection by authorities arouses less opposition than before. Trust in companies, on the other hand, remains relatively low: only half consider companies to be reliable processors of personal data, and the share is the same as in 2018.

Responsibilities regarding cyber security appear unclear to many. As many as 68% of Finns think that 'someone else' is responsible for the security of online service use, and 62% of Finns have an online service password that is over three years old. Especially in the current global situation, digital trust and cybersecurity need everyone's contribution to making the digital environment as safe as possible.

Swedish

Declined trust in how companies handle personal data and young people are more exposed to hacking attempts than the rest of the population

19% of young Swedes claim that they have been exposed to hacking attempts. The average in Sweden is 13% or every eight citizens. Young Swedes are nevertheless more confident with how companies handle personal data than the average Swede (51% compared to 49%).

The decline in trust for companies’ handling of personal data has declined by more than 10% since 2018. One out of two Swedes states that they feel insecure with how their data is being managed, compared to 37% in 2018. We are also more worried about being hacked when shopping online than we were two years ago. Approximately four out of ten states that they are worried about being hacked. Furthermore, we reflect a lot on security issues. 63% in total state that they reflect on their safety online “to a large extent”.

Norwegian

Low trust amongst Norwegians

As both private companies and the public sector are increasingly being cyber attacked, the Norwegians´ trust in how their personal data are being handled decreases. 25 per cent of Norwegians state that they don´t have trust in the public sector regarding cyber security, whilst only 33 per cent feel safe in how private companies handle their personal data.

More findings from Norway to be published here shortly!

Summary of findings

Below are some of the findings from the Security Barometer presented.

The full summary of all nine survey questions can be found here.

Detailed/raw data per country in local languages can be received upon request from news@tietoevry.com

The answers below are stated in percentage (%). Due to the rounding of numbers the total sum can range from 99 to 101 percentage points.

1. How safe do you feel about how your municipality, region or authorities handle your personal data?

2. How safe do you feel about how companies handle your personal data?

3. What is your position on a municipality, region or authority collecting personal data about, for example, travel habits or visits to government websites in order to improve public services?

4. How concerned are you about your personal information being hacked when shopping online?

The full summary of all nine survey questions can be found here.

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About the Security Barometer

The Tietoevry Security Barometer is a bi-annual survey that examines the level of consumer trust in relation to online security and privacy. In its third edition, the Tietoevry Security Barometer collects consumer views on data security and protection across the Nordic countries. This study was conducted in collaboration with the research institute Kantar Public/Sifo in Finland, Norway and Sweden in October and November 2022. There was a total of over 3,000 respondents, roughly 1,000 per each country.

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