“World Affairs” is an annual report created by Ipsos in which respondents answer key questions related to social threats. This year’s study involved 23,000 respondents, most often aged 18-74, from 30 countries, including Poland.
We present key findings related to disinformation and cybersecurity.
Disinformation:
- 3 out of 4 respondents fear the dissemination of false information in the public sphere. A staggering 76% of people from 30 countries consider this a real threat in the coming year.
- The highest level of concern related to disinformation was observed among respondents from the United States – 88%.
- Poland ranks 7th in this study – as many as 81% of us consider the threat related to disinformation to be real in the coming year.
- What is concerning is that only 50% of the respondents (from 30 countries) believe in the effectiveness of the security level provided by their government in the context of disinformation. For Poland, this level is 57%.
Cyberattacks and Cyber Espionage:
- Also, 76% of respondents fear falling victim to cyberattacks or cyber espionage in the next year.
- The highest level of concern is in Thailand and Turkey (both 85%) and again in the United States – 84%.
- Poland ranks 5th in this aspect with respondent concerns at 81% (an increase of 16 pp compared to 2023).
- Also concerning is that only 48% of respondents from 30 countries trust the system protection provided by the government. For Poland, this percentage stands at 56%.
For comparison, 69% of people have fears related to natural disasters, and 63% of respondents fear the outbreak of a world war in the next 25 years.
An expert comment from ESET on this topic:
Disinformation campaigns and cyberattacks are global threats, so it is obvious that companies and governments need to take proactive steps to prioritize and strengthen cybersecurity and assure citizens that they are well prepared to meet new challenges in this area.
This trend will likely continue to grow, supported by artificial intelligence, which autonomously plans a range of actions, such as creating social media posts, producing films, and generating other content that could potentially be used for disinformation.
The Ipsos survey report shows how high the level of fear among Poles is concerning potential disinformation, cyberattacks, and cyber espionage. It is concerning that over 80% of them feel fear in the context of these phenomena and at the same time are unsure about the effectiveness of government systems.
Therefore, we need constant raising of public awareness in identifying, questioning, and countering disinformation, especially in the area of political messages. Organizations should consciously invest in advanced cybersecurity tools to protect their systems and networks from hacking, resulting in spreading disinformation by unauthorized persons through what are considered trusted, official communication channels of a given organization with the world. Moreover, promoting cooperation between the public and private sectors is essential for building stronger defense and resilience to these escalating threats. – comments Kamil Sadkowski, antivirus laboratory analyst at ESET.
Source: https://managerplus.pl/cyberzagrozenia-i-dezinformacja-to-glowne-zrodla-niepokoju-na-swiecie-obawy-polakow-powyzej-sredniej-43018
