US States with the Worst Consumer Cyber-Hygiene

US consumers who practice the fewest cybersecurity best practices to protect their data live in the states of Mississippi, Louisiana, California, Alaska, and Connecticut, according to a new study.

While those five states were ranked the riskiest, according to a Webroot survey, Kentucky, Idaho, Ohio, North Dakota, and New Hampshire ranked the least risky in the US when it comes to consumer security habits. The study surveyed 10,000 US citizens across all 50 states to determine what they know about cyberthreats and how they handle privacy and security of their social media accounts and other data. 

In all, less than half of Americans protect their data: Sixty-four percent don't set their social media accounts to private, 63% reuse passwords across multiple accounts, and 62% of participants use free antivirus software, the study showed. While nearly 80% say they have heard of malware, just 28% could define it. Even so, nearly 90% of respondents say they are adopting the proper cyber protections.

Just 5% back up their data, run a modern anti-malware tool, and rely on a password manager.

Read more here.  

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