More Wireless Subscribers Using Passwords or PINs To Protect Their Smartphones

Most Americans now use PINs or passwords to protect their smartphones, according to a survey by Harris Poll, paid for by CTIA. With the amount of personal data stored on phones increasing, Harris found that 61 percent of wireless consumers use PINs/passwords, up 20 percent from a survey in 2012. The survey also found that 40 percent installed anti-virus software on their smartphones, up 29 percent from the 2012 survey. The new survey also found that more than one-third of consumers installed locks and wipe apps, and 12 percent said they had lost devices in the past year. Almost 50 percent of those said they used a program to locate their phones and nearly 40 percent contacted their carriers. “These results demonstrate that the consumer education programs developed by the wireless industry and by individual companies are improving Americans’ cybersecurity behaviors,” said CTIA Vice President-Technology & Cybersecurity John Marinho. Harris did an online survey with more than 1,500 respondents.