New report finds 1 in 6 Australians fell victim to cyber crime during lockdown

CANBERRA, Aug 14, 2020, 9News. As many as one in six Australians fell victim to an online scam during the COVID-19 pandemic, prompting experts to warn of illegal activity as screen time increases, 9News reported.

Findings from the NortonLifeLock Digital Transformation Report reveal changes in Australians’ behaviours online as a result of the lockdown.

The most alarming finding being that as many as one in six Australians fell victim to cybercrime during the lockdown period.

Mark Gorrie, Senior Director of NortonLifeLock, Asia-Pacific, says it’s likely cybercrime increased during lockdown as a result of people’s heightened anxieties around COVID-19.

“Cyber criminals always prey on people’s fears, they are very opportunistic,” Mr Gorrie told Nine.com.au.

“Depending on what’s happening at the time, even pre-COVID in Australia, bushfires were a big problem and we started to see charity scams associated with that.”