A woman uses her mobile phone as she walks past in front of an Optus shop in Sydney, Australia, Feb 8, 2018. (DANIEL MUNOZ / REUTERS)
CANBERRA — One third of Australian adults have been exposed to data breaches in the last year, a research has found.
According to a survey published by Australian National University (ANU) on Tuesday, 32.1 percent of 3,500 respondents said they or someone in their household had been the victim of a breach in the previous 12 months.
Roughly one third of adult Australians, or around 6.4 million people, have been the victim of a breach in the last 12 months
The age group most likely to have their data compromised were those aged 25-34, with 41.5 percent saying they had been exposed.
"Roughly one third of adult Australians, or around 6.4 million people, have been the victim of a breach in the last 12 months," Nicholas Biddle, co-author of the study from the ANU Center for Social Research and Methods, said in a media release.
"In comparison our survey found only 11.2 percent of Australians had been the victim of serious crimes like burglary or assault in the last five years."
"As our lives become more and more dominated by data, so too does our exposure to data related crime. This is a serious issue that needs serious attention."
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The survey was conducted in October after telecommunications giant Optus and health insurance provider Medibank disclosed details of major cyber attacks that compromised the data of millions of customers.
It found trust in institutions with regard to data privacy declined, with social media companies receiving an average score of 2.94 out of 10 on security from respondents and telecommunications a 4.08.
"Almost all Australian adults, 96.2 percent, said companies that do not adequately protect consumer data should face significant sanctions," Biddle said.
"And 92.8 percent of Australian adults think the government regulation of new technologies is crucial for consumer protection. At the same time, 90.6 percent think the government should regulate companies' use of data."