Spain is the European Union (EU) country that has suffered the most identity theft through the internet, along with Bulgaria, and well above the European average. 7% of Spanish and Bulgarian Internet users have been victims of theft or abuse of personal data or private information during the last 12 months, according to a comparative study published by Eurostat, the European statistics agency. Theft or abuse of identities and private data affects on average 4% of ... Spain is the European Union (EU) country that has suffered the most identity theft through the internet, along with Bulgaria, and well above the European average. 7% of Spanish and Bulgarian Internet users have been victims of theft or abuse of personal data or private information during the last 12 months, according to a comparative study published by Eurostat, the European statistics agency. The theft or abuse of identities and private data affects on average 4% of Internet users in the EU.33% of Spanish Internet users have also suffered during the last 12 months the infection of their computer by a computer virus or spyware, according to the aforementioned Eurostat report. This same problem has affected on average 31% of Internet users in the EU. The most affected countries have been Bulgaria (58% of internet users affected), Malta (50%), Slovakia (47%), Hungary (46%) and Italy (45%).
4% of Spanish Internet users have also suffered financial losses in the last 12 months due to the fraudulent use of their credit card details or the fraudulent obtaining of their bank details (phishing). The EU average stands at 3% and the countries with the greatest problems of this type are: Latvia (8% of Internet users harmed), Great Britain (7%), Austria (5%) and Malta (5%).
Source: El Periodico
