Associated Press-MTV poll finds 3 in 10 teens and young adults impersonated online

Date: 2011-10-06 09:54:37

According to the Associated Press, a new Associated Press / MTV poll found that 3 of 10 teens reported being impersonated or monitored online.

In the AP-MTV poll, two-thirds of those who had been hacked said at some point they've changed their password in response to digital abuse. 46 percent have altered their email address, screen name or phone number, and 25 percent have deleted a social networking profile.

The poll cites several cases where roommates or friends impersonated each other as pranks. In two cited cases, the incidents were considered harmless and fun. In other cited cases, the intent appears cruel.

In our opinion the 3 in 10 number may not translate the same for adults. Adults don't typically room together in dorms, or hang out in friends bedrooms where access to open browser sessions or saved logins are as easy. For most adults, the biggest equivalent risk is leaving a laptop open or an unlocked desktop at work. The lesson everyone should take away from this poll is to not save logins for convenience and follow healthy password practices.

Category: Breach

Subcategory: Passwords