"An internet security paradox"

From the StopBadware.org blog:

This morning, StopBadware released the results of a recent poll we commissioned through Zogby on internet users’ attitudes about their safety online.

From our release:

... 88 percent of Internet users feel safe when using personal computers to access the Internet. Furthermore, 84 percent agree that they have the information and tools needed to make good decisions to protect their privacy and security online.

This confidence in online safety is unfortunately not borne out by other research, such as a recent study by McAfee and the National Cyber Security Alliance that just 24 percent of Americans are adequately protected by firewalls and updated anti-virus and anti-spyware software.

StopBadware manager Maxim Weinstein calls the results an "internet security paradox." Weinstein will be testifying about this and related issues tomorrow, at a Federal Trade Commission hearing on consumer education about internet threats.

***

Find the full press release regarding the poll here, and visit StopBadware's reports page and news page for more releases, alerts, and research, including the project's most recent update on the state of badware, Trends in Badware 2007.