• by Erik Sass , Staff Writer @eriksass1, August 19, 2014

You might think that the endless stream of news reports about identity theft, fraud and security breaches on social networks might have made some sort of impression on the social media-using public, but we remain blissfully ignorant of these threats, according to a new survey of 11,135 Internet users around the world by Kapersky Lab, which specializes in cyber-security. 

Overall 78% of Internet users polled said they did not think they might be an attractive target for cyber-criminals attacking their finances -- but on the other hand 58% were concerned that their personal data may be stolen, and 60% said they were afraid of being spied on via various devices, including Web cams. 92% said they store sensitive information on their devices, and 38% are afraid people will see it.

Meanwhile 10% said that they share private information with strangers on social media, and 15% said they share information on social media that they wouldn’t disclose in other (“real life”) circumstances. Furthermore 18% acknowledged that they share more personal information than is safe on social media -- although the real proportion is probably much higher. 

Turning to preventive measures, only 63% of tablets and 58% of Android smartphones are protected against cyber threats using special security solutions, and just 38% of respondents say they take precautions when using public wi-fi networks.

In terms of actual attempts by cyber-criminals, 43% have come across a financial threat onlines 40% of respondents said they have received emails or messages from social media sites with links to unknown sites, and 21% have received emails that claimed to be from a social media site and asked for their passwords and other identifying information. Focusing on mobile users, 6% of mobile social media users said that their social accounts have been hacked, including 13% of Android tablet users. Overall 31% of respondents said one of their devices had been infected by malware.