People believe they would be far more stressed out by not having Internet access than if their heating was turned off, their tellies didn’t work or they didn’t have water, according to a new poll.
The survey, carried out on behalf of Infosecurity Europe, found that 38% felt that they would be most stressed out by not having Internet access at home followed by 32% not having water, 18% not having heating with 8% being less stressed by no TV and 4% no washing machine.
The street survey was commissioned by Infosecurity Europe in the run up to the 2013 show running from the 23rd–25th April 2013, at Earls Court, London, and interviewed 1000 London commuters.
When asked how long they could cope without Internet access at home, 27% said they didn’t think they’d be able to cope if the internet went down, 25% could not last longer than 24 hours and 29% would seriously be in trouble if they didn’t have it after a few days. Only 4% saying they do not need it at all.
It would seem that people have become even more reliant than ever before on the Internet as in 2012 17% said they just couldn’t live without any Internet connection, however this has risen to 27% in 2013.
Claire Sellick, Event Director for Infosecurity Europe said; “It is not just at home that the Internet has become a ‘must have’ the same sentiment falls into the workplace too. When workers were asked what would cause them the most distress at work, a third of people citing this over and above their computer systems going down even worse than a really bad commute to work. Some conscientious workers,13% said that simply being late caused them to ‘flip out’, whilst a thirsty few (8%) said that no tea or coffee would ruin their day more than anything else and for a small proportion the lowly office printer/photo copier was the item likely to create the most stress.”
Sellick continued: “Having Internet connection is part and parcel of our everyday lives becoming more important than even heat and water at home, which does seem phenomenal but shows just how dependent we on the Internet. Considering that so much information now passes over the Internet both in our private and corporate lives, now more than ever it’s important to consider how you access this information and how you go about protecting your most sensitive data.”
When asked what people would be more concerned about losing whilst out and about – cash is still king as people are most concerned about losing their wallet/purse (46%), a third were most concerned about losing their personal phone and keys were came in at 13 % and only 5% were concerned about losing their work phone.
http://www.infosec.co.uk.