Dutch people like to have control over their online security

Only one in three people in the Netherlands feel genuinely safe online. People feel unsafe online mainly because of things like hacking, phishing and identity theft. Additionally, only one in four people in the Netherlands say they have sufficient technical knowledge to guarantee their online security. Dutch people nevertheless like to have control over their online security.

This emerges from the Online Safety Monitor 2023 of KPN and ESET, carried out by Blauw Research into the experiences and needs of consumers with regard to online security. The average online security score given by consumers is 6.9. Elderly people feel more secure online. The social component of online security plays a role more frequently among young people. They feel less safe online because of scamming and cyberbullying.

“Just last week NCTV reported that cyberthreats are the single greatest concern for all people in the Netherlands. That is confirmed in this survey“, says Dave Maasland, CEO of ESET Nederland. “We are becoming ever more digitally connected and the number of smart devices in the home has soared; we see it as our mission to ensure that we can feel genuinely safe online. New times call for new solutions and that is precisely what we’re providing here in conjunction with KPN.”

Online security over online convenience

The KPN-ESET Online Security Monitor 2023 shows that almost two thirds of people over 18 in the Netherlands consider online security more important than online convenience. This can also be seen from the choice of browser and the willingness to share personal data online: more than eight in ten Dutch residents prefer using a browser that blocks dangerous websites, even if it means they have less freedom to visit websites. Eight in ten people in the Netherlands prefer not to share their personal data online, accepting that this could restrict their use of online services.

“For consumers it is often a balancing act between convenience and security,” explains Gijs Isbouts of KPN Veilig. “New online services and products make life easier, but we often overlook the fact that they also make us more vulnerable. Take smart TV, smart lamps or a smart (energy) meter, for example; they are all internet-connected and contribute to our ease of use but not, according to this survey, to our feeling of security online.”

Keeping control

The feeling of insecurity online is most likely enhanced by a lack of technical knowledge. In fact, only a quarter of Dutch residents say they have sufficient technical knowledge to guarantee their own online security. Only a quarter of Dutch residents want to have their online security managed fully by an external party. They prefer to look after their own online security so as to retain control of it. In the event of security problems, the vast majority would rather know about it straight away, even if those problems have already been solved.

In particular, parents with children living at home need to have control over the online security of their children, to protect them against the hazards of the internet. Four in ten parents have the feeling that they have too little control over the online security of their children. “It’s very tricky for parents to decide what their children are allowed to see or what they click on; it’s impossible to monitor this on every device and at all times,” says Dave of ESET. “But there are ways of eliminating the hazards at the source.”

KPN Veilig Netwerk Thuis

To complement a virus scanner and password manager, this week KPN Veilig Netwerk Thuis was added to the KPN Veilig portfolio. This ESET application protects all the devices connected to your KPN modem. Consequently, all your devices at home are secured. Both the smart devices and the non-smart devices. They just have to be connected to the modem.

 “KPN thinks it’s essential for you to have a simple way of assuring your online security,” says Gijs Isbouts, director of KPN Veilig. “Our base network is already secure. But you could still be at risk. If you click on a phishing link, for instance. Or by visiting unsafe websites. KPN Veilig Netwerk Thuis enables you to keep control of your online security at home without the need to be technically skilled; and the best thing is that you can activate it with just one mouse-click.”