Spyware: The threat of unwanted software programs is changing the way people use the internet

http://www.pewinternet.org/PPF/r/160/report_display.asp

> Spyware and the threat of unwanted programs being secretly loaded
> onto computers are becoming serious threats online. Nine out of ten
> internet users say they have adjusted their online behavior out of
> fear of falling victim to software intrusions. Unfortunately, many
> internet users’ fears are grounded in experience - 43% of internet
> users, or about 59 million American adults, say they have had
> spyware or adware on their home computer. Although most do not know
> the source of their woes, 68% of home internet users, or about 93
> million American adults, have experienced at least one computer
> problem in the past year that are consistent with problems caused
> by spyware or viruses.

Full Questionaire Results (47 pages):
http://www.pewinternet.org/pdfs/PIP_Spyware_MayJune05_Qs.pdf

> Sample: n = 2,001 adults 18 and older
> Interviewing dates: 05.04.05 – 06.07.05
> Margin of error is plus or minus 3 percentage

Please read the questionaire... the complaints and actual quoted answers should not surprise many of you (we've heard it all before!), but the comments make clear why it is so damn hard to maintain a PC help or support desk these days. When reading the comments from survey respondents, you will realize where the 'gap' is (mentioned in the summary below)  between the PC user's perception of what is wrong and the reality of the problem.  Clearly there is a problem "communicating" both symptoms and solutions, and result is a lot of confusion in PC support trenches.

Full Report (23 pages):
http://www.pewinternet.org/pdfs/PIP_Spyware_Report_July_05.pdf

Report Summary:

> Nine out of ten internet users say they have adjusted their online
> behavior out of fear of falling victim to software intrusions.
>
> Spyware and the threat of unwanted programs being secretly loaded
> onto computers are becoming serious threats online. Tens of
> millions of Americans have been affected in the past year by
> software intrusions and many more have begun to take precautions by
> changing the way they use the internet. Overall, 91% of internet
> users say they have made at least one change in their online
> behavior to avoid unwanted software programs. Among the changes:
>
> * 81% of internet users say they have stopped opening email
> attachments unless they are sure these documents are safe.
>
> * 48% of internet users say they have stopped visiting particular
> Web sites that they fear might deposit unwanted programs on their
> computers.
>
> * 25% of internet users say they have stopped downloading music or
> video files from peer-to-peer networks to avoid getting unwanted
> software programs on their computers.
>
> * 18% of internet users say they have started using a different
> Web browser to avoid software intrusions.
>
> After hearing descriptions of "spyware" and "adware," 43% of
> internet users, or about 59 million American adults, say they have
> had one of these programs on their home computer. This is probably
> a conservative estimate since this survey may have been the first
> time that respondents had heard definitions of the programs. In
> addition, there are significant gaps between people’s perceptions
> and the reality of what is on their computers and there is a very
> strong likelihood that a big portion of those who have had computer
> problems have been victimized by spyware or more aggressive
> computer viruses without their knowing the cause of their problems.
>
> For instance, in October 2004, the Online Safety Study by AOL and
> the National Cyber Security Alliance reported that 53% of
> respondents said they had spyware or adware on their computers, but
> a scan revealed that 80% of respondents actually had such programs
> installed.
>
> In sum, 68% of home internet users, or about 93 million American
> adults, have experienced at least one of these problems in the
> past year. Sixty percent of internet users who report computer
> problems do not know the source, but those who do know cite
> viruses, spyware, adware, operating system flaws, and hardware
> glitches. Not everyone attempted a fix, but those who did often
> found that they needed help, paid or unpaid.
>
> About 28 million American adults ended up spending money to get
> their computer working again, typically in the range of $100.
>