Global identity verification company, Veriff, analyzed FBI data and conducted an exclusive survey to find out which cybercrimes Americans are most afraid of and how often they are happening – to determine whether our fears are valid.
You can view the full report here.
The top 5 cybercrimes Americans are most afraid of and how often they happen
| Rank | Type of crime | % Americans afraid of falling victim to this crime | Cases as a % of all reported online crimes |
| 1 | Identity theft | 31.47% | 7.13% |
| 2 | Personal data breach | 13.79% | 7.16% |
| 3 | Credit card fraud | 12.69% | 2.31% |
| 4 | Hacking extortion (hackers hold data until their demands for payment are met) | 9.89% | 5.44% |
| 5 | Phishing/vishing/smishing/pharming (aka the use of emails or messages from a fake company to get information) | 5.39% | 44.76% |
While 31% of Americans are afraid of identity theft, these crimes only made up 7% of all reported crimes. Only 5% of respondents were afraid of phishing, vishing, smishing or pharming scams but these made up a huge 45% of reports.
