A survey by internet security firm Malwarebytes has found that black, indigenous and people of colour (BIPOC) are more likely to suffer from identity theft.
According to Cyberscoop, the survey was conducted by Malwarebytes alongside the non-profit company Digitunity and the Cybercrime Support Network. The research looked at the demographics at cybercrime and harvested opinion of 5,000 people across Germany, the US and the UK.
The survey discovered that just 47% of BIPOC respondents were able to avoid financial damage due to identity theft compared to 59% of overall respondents. Meanwhile, BIPOC individuals on overage reporting approximately $200 more in financial losses.
Malwarebytes online privacy advocate David Ruiz said, “Forty-seven percent sounds like okay, well, that’s not so bad — it’s like 50-50 whether you’re losing money, right? But 47% is compared to 59% of all respondents. That means that everyone else has a better chance at not being financially hit, everyone else has a better chance of skirting by kind of unscathed.
“This survey, for me at least, really showed that the internet is not an equal experience for everyone. And people are telling us that loud and clear. There are groups who feel less private, there are groups who feel less safe.”
Ruiz added that the report’s finding on cybercrime should be considered ‘within the wider context of the way communities experience the internet in unequal ways’. He also remarked that the study reflects the interconnectedness of online and offline harms
For example, the survey found women were twice as likely as men to attribute credit card information fraud to theft or a physical attack.
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