HP Inc. today released the results of a unique study4 that works to
better understand the level of awareness associated with webcam
hacking and how consumers changed their behavior as a result.
The concern around webcam privacy has permeated
into pop culture, from headline grabbing images of well-known
figures covering their webcams with post-its to storyline arcs in
popular TV shows. To uncover how people associate webcam usage with
their day-to-day, HP commissioned a survey of approximately 3,000
individuals across North America, including 1,000 US consumers that
own a laptop with an internal webcam.
Based on the US results of the survey, 8 in 10
consumers are aware privacy can be comprised via their laptop
webcam5, and more than 6 in 10 consumers are actually concerned
that their privacy will be compromised6. How respondents heard
about webcam hacking is equally fascinating7; among US respondents,
43 percent learned about webcam hacking through social media, with
40 percent via a movie or television show. And webcam hacking is
also a topic of conversation among friends and family, with 38
percent of respondents hearing about webcam hacking via word of
mouth8. Equally shocking, 1 in 10 respondents either know someone
whose webcam was hacked or have themselves been hacked via their
webcam9.
Less than half of consumers feel comfortable
leaving their laptop open – with highest levels of discomfort in
more intimate activities, including using the bathroom (81
percent), being intimate (80 percent) and sleeping (63 percent).
Even more casual and mundane activities had a large degree of
discomfort, from crying (64 percent), working out (55 percent), to
eating dinner (46 percent)10.
Because of this discomfort, 3 in 4 respondents
said if they were in view of their laptop’s webcam they would
either turn it off, cover it, or close their laptop to get out of
view11. And 6 in 10 respondents physically cover their laptop’s
webcam to feel more secure or prevent it from being compromised,
using everything from tape (46 percent), or a sticky note (35
percent), to a bandage (8 percent), or even a piece of gum (2
percent)12.
However, while knowledge and concern around
webcam hacking affects all generations equally, awareness doesn’t
always equate to action. For example, 80 percent of Baby Boomers
are aware of the issue of webcam hacking, but only 49 percent have
covered their webcams to feel more secure13.
The issue of webcam hacking also varies by
gender, with women feeling significantly more vulnerable (67
percent of women vs. 59 percent of men) concerning their privacy
being comprised via their laptop webcam14.
There are even differences regionally on the use
of and concerns around laptop webcams. While only one in 10 US and
Canadian respondents knew someone or themselves experienced laptop
webcam hacking, that number jumped to one in 5 in Mexico15. Mexico
also experienced higher levels of discomfort doing activities in
view of a webcam. For more information on study breakouts by
country, view the Webcam Survey Country Fact Sheet here.
Finally, more than 8 in 10 consumers believe
laptop manufacturers should make it easier to turn off a laptop’s
webcam16. Nearly half of respondents believe it takes too much
effort to turn off a webcam in a laptop’s settings17, and 79
percent wish they could turn it off with the flip of a switch18,
similar to the HP webcam kill switch feature found on new HP
Spectre and HP ENVY laptops, to help life move without interruption
and give people peace of mind to be themselves.
To learn more about the study conducted by HP,
including infographics, hi-res images, b-roll, and in-depth fact
sheet with detailed findings, visit the HP Webcam Survey Press Kit
at the HP Press Center. To learn more about PCs with HP’s webcam
kill switch feature, click here.
About HP
HP Inc. creates technology that makes life
better for everyone, everywhere. Through our product and service
portfolio of personal systems, printers and 3D printing solutions,
we engineer experiences that amaze. More information about HP Inc.
is available at http://www.hp.com.
Jenni Balthrop, HPjenni.balthrop@hp.com
www.hp.com/go/newsroom |
Lynsey Rose, EdelmanLynsey.Rose@edelman.com |
Natalen Bandler, Edelman
Intelligencenatalen.bandler@edelmanintelligence.com |
©Copyright 2019 HP Development Company, L.P. The
information contained herein is subject to change without notice.
The only warranties for HP products and services are set forth in
the express warranty statements accompanying such products and
services. Nothing herein should be construed as constituting an
additional warranty. HP shall not be liable for technical or
editorial errors or omissions contained herein.
____________________1 US results from Q1 of the
HP Webcam Security Study, 2019: “To the best of your knowledge,
which of the following do you think can be compromised?”2 US
results from Q7 of the HP Webcam Security Study, 2019: “How much do
you agree or disagree with the following about your laptop’s
webcam?”3 US results from Q7 of the HP Webcam Security Study, 2019:
”How much do you agree or disagree with the following about your
laptop’s webcam?”4 US results from Q1 of the HP Webcam Security
Study, 2019: The HP Webcam Security Study is a 10-minute online
survey by HP Inc. It was conducted by global market research firm
Edelman Intelligence, across North America (US, Canada, Mexico).
Fieldwork took place over May-June 2019. We interviewed 3,000
consumers (1,000 in each market) who own a laptop with an internal
webcam.5 US results from Q1 of the HP Webcam Security Study, 2019:
“To the best of your knowledge, which of the following do you think
can be compromised?”6 US results from Q7 of the HP Webcam Security
Study, 2019: ”How much do you agree or disagree with the following
about your laptop’s webcam?”7 US results from Q1a of the HP Webcam
Security Study, 2019: ”Where have you heard about the possibility
of someone’s privacy being compromised via a laptop webcam? By
compromised we mean an outside person/party getting unauthorized
access to someone else’s webcam and spying through it (commonly
known as “hacking” or a “security breach”)?8 US results from Q1a of
the HP Webcam Security Study, 2019: ”Where have you heard about the
possibility of someone’s privacy being compromised via a laptop
webcam? By compromised we mean an outside person/party getting
unauthorized access to someone else’s webcam and spying through it
(commonly known as “hacking” or a “security breach”)?9 US results
from Q1a of the HP Webcam Security Study, 2019: ”Where have you
heard about the possibility of someone’s privacy being compromised
via a laptop webcam? By compromised we mean an outside person/party
getting unauthorized access to someone else’s webcam and spying
through it (commonly known as “hacking” or a “security
breach”)?10US results from Q5 and Q7 of the HP Webcam Security
Study, 2019: ”How much do you agree or disagree with the
following about your laptop’s webcam?”; “How comfortable would you
feel doing the following activities while you are in view of your
laptop’s webcam?”11 US results from Q6 of the HP Webcam Security
Study, 2019: ”If you were in the view of your laptop’s webcam while
you were doing the following, what would you be most likely to do?”
(net of “turn off my laptop’s webcam/physically cover my laptop’s
webcam with something/close my laptop)12 US results from Q4 of the
HP Webcam Security Study, 2019: ”What have you physically covered
your laptop’s webcam with to feel more secure and/or prevent it
from being compromised?”13 US results from Q1 and Q7 of the HP
Webcam Security Study, 2019: “: “To the best of your knowledge,
which of the following do you think can be compromised?”; : ”How
much do you agree or disagree with the following about your
laptop’s webcam?”14 US results from Q2 and Q7 of the HP Webcam
Security Study, 2019: ”How vulnerable do you feel your privacy
is being compromised via your laptop’s webcam (i.e., it being
accessed by someone remotely)?”; “How much do you agree or disagree
with the following about your laptop’s webcam?”15 Canada, Mexico
and US results from Q1 of the HP Webcam Security Study, 2019: “To
the best of your knowledge, which of the following do you think can
be compromised?”16 US results from Q7 of the HP Webcam Security
Study, 2019: ”How much do you agree or disagree with the following
about your laptop’s webcam?”17 US results from Q7 of the HP Webcam
Security Study, 2019: ”How much do you agree or disagree with the
following about your laptop’s webcam?”18 US results from Q7 of the
HP Webcam Security Study, 2019: ”How much do you agree or disagree
with the following about you laptop’s webcam?”
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