Hello reader and welcome to a new blog on the Norton.com community, @Norton_UK Security
The blogs on this site offer the perspective of Symantec and Norton UK employees on Internet security, mobile security and online family safety, along with other issues which impact UK internet security industry.
In this introduction, I’d like to address a common misconception about Norton, namely the belief that Internet security equals PC anti-virus, and that anti-virus equals protection. While protecting a PC against viruses is important and at the heart of what Norton does, full Internet security is more than anti-virus, and more than just protecting PCs!
Internet security has changed considerably over the years, from a base line of anti-virus for your PC, to supporting the proliferation of devices used to access the Internet, whether those devices are PCs, tablets, Macs, iPads, or smartphones.
In addition, the threat landscape is constantly evolving as cybercriminals use every tool at their disposal to attempt to make money from Internet users. According to the latest Norton Cybercrime Report, 57% of UK adults have been victims of cybercrime in their lifetime, with a cybercrime incident costing on average £144 to resolve.
When it comes to new ways to target people, criminals go where the users are, meaning that social networks are a prime hunting ground. 75% of adults believe that they are targeted by criminals on social media networks to obtain and abuse their personal information. Latest data from Norton shows that many well known social networks are a haven for cybercriminals with 56% of social network attacks involving fake surveys or gift card scams.
Mobile platforms are also vulnerable. Last year, mobile malware increased by 58%, and 32% of all mobile threats attempted to steal information, such as e-mail addresses and phone numbers. Many believe that Macs are safe from attack but while hackers still primarily target PCs, more than 600,000 Mac computerswere infected by one attack last April; just one example that no operating system is safe from online threats
In addition to cybercrime, Norton helps to protect families against different types of online threat through products like Norton Family. One in five children worldwide admits they are doing things on the Internet their parents wouldn’t approve of. Norton is educating adults on the importance of installing security software for children and teenagers on each of their technology devices, including mobiles, tablets and PCs to allow them to surf the net safely and securely.
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Emma Jeffs, Internet Security Expert, Norton by Symantec