78 per cent Indian consumers sacrifice credentials for online diet tips
Intel Security on Tuesday released findings from its new study, “Online Security Diet: You Are What You Click,” which examines the online behaviors and attitudes of Indians ages 21 to 54 toward dieting clickbait.
The research revealed that when it comes to the desire for the ideal body, people may be willing to sacrifice their online security and identity if it takes them a step closer to achieving desired results. It was conducted in April 2016 by MSI International via an online questionnaire to 1,403 people in India, age 21-54. The study had 15,000 consumers participating in the study globally.
The survey indicates that youngsters between the age group of 21-30 years are more likely (77 per cent) to click on promotional links around diet tips and programs.
While the month of June brings about a pleasant weather with commencement of rains in India, it also necessitates the need to maintain a healthy diet to stave off the many diseases that monsoon brings along with it.
During the rains, people abstain from eating food that’s cooked outside, making June a popular month to turn up online in search of new diet routines. Cybercriminals exploit this need by creating phony weight loss ads leading unsuspecting people into digital traps.
“Findings from our study indicate that Indian millennials (aged 20-30) are conscious about their diet, and they tend to rely on information available online for quick diet fixes, and cybercriminals are increasingly exploiting this behavior for their own benefit.” Said Venkat Krishnapur, Head of Operations for Intel Security’s India Engineering Centre.
“The study decodes the seasonality of consumer search habits, creating awareness about the importance of safe searches online. It points to the importance of being able to correctly identify potentially risky sites and emails. This is why we continue to invest in ongoing education efforts to reinforce strong habits helping consumers enjoy safer experiences online.”
Dieting Promotions: Too Good to be True?
Over two thirds of the survey respondents (71 percent) between ages 21-54 clicked on a promotional link that offers a diet program.
This figure rises to 77 percent for respondents within the age group of 21-30 years.
70 percent of respondents are more likely to click on a promotional link or an article offering dietary tips featuring or endorsed by a celebrity.
Think Before You Click
A vast majority of the people (78 percent) that click on link for diet programs/ tips/ products did consider that it could be spam/malware.
That said, 44 percent of survey respondents have purchased a service or product from a promotional link without knowing whether or not it’s a secure site.
Respondents were most likely to click on a promotional link for diet programs/ products/tips generated by a Google* search (68 percent), with others reporting they would click links featured on Facebook* (67 percent), email (47 percent), or a website (44 percent).
Beware of What You Share
Many respondents reported their willingness to share information like email address (79 percent), full name (72 percent) or age (53 percent) with a website, service or company in hopes of reaching their goal weight or dream body.
A significant number of respondents indicated that they would also share their home address (28 percent), credit/debit card details (13 percent), or even a photo in underwear/bathing suit (e.g. before/after shots) (6 percent).
Yet one out of four respondents (25 percent) admitted that they didn’t know how to check if the website was secure before providing payment details or personal information.
