Findings reveal that almost half of UK consumers are regularly sharing passwords used across multiple accounts with friends and family
Kaspersky today announced research revealing that almost half (49%) of UK consumers have shared their password with a friend or family to give them access to streaming services such as Netflix or Disney+, social channels, personal accounts, or marketing offers for deals.
With streaming services moving to quash password-sharing - essentially shutting out users who don’t live in the same household as the account holder - the research reveals both the extent of the challenge for service providers and the privacy risks being taken by consumers. Surveying 2,000 consumers across the UK, the Kaspersky research found password sharing more broadly to be rife across the country, with nearly half (47%) of respondents also admitting to using the same password across multiple accounts.
“Simply put, ensuring you have an effective password known only to you is good practice, but our research finds that not only are consumers sharing this important personal information widely, they are also using the same password across multiple accounts and services,” explained Jornt van der Wiel, Senior Security Researcher, Kaspersky. “With the major streaming service providers, in particular, starting to clamp down on password-sharing for financial reasons, this should also be a signal for consumers to be much more aware of the huge risks they are taking. Once one account is infiltrated, the risk of all accounts with the same password being hacked are much, much higher.”
Findings reveal that password sharing amongst family is, understandably, higher with 31% of respondents admitting to this activity, compared with almost 10% who have shared their password with friends. A further 5% of respondents went as far as admitting they had shared their password with a friend of a friend. The research also found that a third (33%) of consumers have received messages telling them that their account has been compromised in a data breach in recent months, with 12% saying that they failed to change their password after being notified.
van der Wiel continues, "Our research underscores a perplexing aspect of human behaviour in the digital age, being that a huge number of consumers are not mindful enough that shared, stolen or intercepted private data can not only be used by criminals who steal it, but also resold within the criminal underground where there is a thriving market for such information.”
