New Harris Poll: Cybersecurity Fears May Stall COVID-19 Digital Vaccine Card Adoption in the United Kingdom, Identity Theft and Fake Cards Top List of Concerns

Anomali, the leader in intelligence-driven cybersecurity solutions, today announced availability of its latest survey conducted by The Harris Poll. The study, which gathered responses from more than 1,000 adults aged 18 and over in the United Kingdom, reveals that more than three-quarters of British adults have cybersecurity fears around the use of COVID-19 digital vaccination cards. Additional findings showed which entities respondents believe are responsible for protecting them against cyberattacks and who they believe the most likely culprits will be.

A majority of respondents predict that a disruptive cyberattack will follow digital vaccine card adoption, findings also reveal confidence levels when it comes to how prepared the nation is to mount a defense. Among key findings:

• 76% have cybersecurity concerns related to COVID-19 digital vaccination cards. Identity theft topped the list at 51%, with fake vaccine cards that could be used to hack smartphones (44%) and data breaches (45%) close behind.

• 89% have smartphones capable of supporting COVID-19 digital vaccination cards. In contrast, a survey conducted a little over a year ago by Anomali and Censuswide showed that half of respondents knew someone that did not possess smartphones necessary to use healthcare technologies such as contract tracing apps.

• 54% say they are “very likely” to use COVID-19 digital vaccination cards if they become a requirement for certain activities, such as traveling, attending sports venues, school attendance, entering a store or government building, etc. However, doubt remains, as 26% said they are “somewhat” likely. A full 21% rejected the idea of using digital vaccine cards, stating they are not likely to use them at all.

• 64% expect that COVID-19 digital vaccination cards will lead to a cyberattack causing “moderate to major” disruption to business, government, and consumers. 27% said that disruption would only be “slight” while 9% do not expect any related disruptions.

• When asked to identify what type of adversary is most likely to carry out a cyberattack related to COVID-19 digital vaccination cards, organized cybercriminal gangs were most frequently cited (42%).

• 64% “somewhat to strongly” agree that government and private business is prepared to defend consumers against a related cyberattack. 74% said the government was most responsible for providing defense.

• Although COVID-19 passport standards haven’t been established, when asked to pick from a list of organizations that will most likely be responsible for creating and managing standards, the government was most frequently cited (55%), the World Health Organization (WHO) came in second (44%).

“Over the course of the pandemic, our intelligence analysts detected thousands of cyberattacks that were taking advantage of people’s desire to consume information online about how COVID-19 was impacting their lives and world. We’ve detected adversaries doing everything from using fake contact tracing apps to hijack smart phones and steal credentials to launching mass phishing campaigns to infect networks with things like ransomware,” said Hugh Njemanze, President, Anomali. “The easing of restrictions, rise in cyberattacks, and consumers’ willingness to use their smartphones to break free from restrictive lockdowns are at a nexus. Organizations responsible for keeping consumers and businesses safe online need to know who the adversaries are, where the attacks are coming from, and how to detect them before they develop into catastrophes.”

• Download the ebook: COVID-19: The Global Health Pandemic and Cybersecurity Challenges
• Read the blog: The COVID-19 Pandemic Changed Everything, Can You Detect the New Normal?
• View the infographic: COVID-19 DIGITAL VACCINE EFFORTS MAY STALL AMID FEARS

Methodology

This survey was conducted online by The Harris Poll on behalf of Anomali from June 30 – July 7, 2021 among 1,007 U.K. adults all ages 18 and older. Raw data were weighted by the following demographic variables where necessary to reflect the general adult population as follows: age, gender, education, region, race, HH size, and marital status. Propensity score weighting was also used to adjust for respondents’ propensity to be online. This online survey is not based on a probability sample and therefore no estimate of theoretical sampling error can be calculated.

Twitter: https://twitter.com/Anomali

LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/anomali/

Blog: https://www.anomali.com/blog

About The Harris Poll

The Harris Poll is one of the longest-running surveys in the U.S., tracking public opinion, motivations and social sentiment since 1963. It is now part of Harris Insights & Analytics, a global consulting and market research firm that strives to reveal the authentic values of modern society to inspire leaders to create a better tomorrow. We work with clients in three primary areas; building twenty-first century corporate reputation, crafting brand strategy and performance tracking, and earning organic media through public relations research. Our mission is to provide insights and advisory to help leaders make the best decisions possible.

About Anomali

Anomali is the leader in global intelligence-driven cybersecurity. Our customers rely on us to see and detect threats, stop breaches, stop attackers, elevate resiliency, and improve the productivity of their security operations. Our solutions serve customers around the world in every major industry vertical, including many of the Global 1000. We are a SaaS company that offers native cloud, multi-cloud, on-premises, and hybrid technologies. As an early threat intelligence innovator, Anomali was founded in 2013 and is backed by leading venture firms including Google Ventures, IVP, General Catalyst, and several others. Learn more at www.anomali.com.

To view this piece of content from cts.businesswire.com, please give your consent at the top of this page.

View source version on businesswire.com: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20210729005800/en/

Contact information

Joe Franscella
news@anomali.com