In August, we conducted our annual survey designed to gauge attitudes about mobile security and privacy. In looking behind this year’s numbers, I was struck by how shifting perspectives seem to mirror the goings-on in the world of Apple. As a trillion-dollar company and the maker of the ever-popular iPhone, Apple has a metaphorical magnifying glass on everything it does, good or bad.
Some key takeaways from the survey:
- The share of respondents who rarely or never talk about sensitive information on their smartphones jumped significantly to 55% from 47% last year. This is likely due in large part to the January revelation of Apple’s FaceTime bug that gave strangers a potential opening into users’ smartphone microphones.
- An overwhelming 94% of respondents are concerned about digital privacy, up from 90% last year. Apple’s massive ad campaign launched in March touting the company’s privacy practices likely helped boost sentiment in this regard.
- Financial information has widened its lead as the biggest concern among respondents in the event of their phone being hacked. The popularity of the new Apple Card, coupled with growing adoption of Apple Pay among iPhone users, likely spurred this new thinking.
Take a look at the infographic to see the rest of the findings.
