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New research reveals a disconnect between the fears of Australians and the steps businesses are taking to protect their data from compromise.
The Australian internet domain administrator, auDA, has released new research that shows a growing sense of the scope of cyber attacks targeting Australian organisations.
According to auDA’s Digital Lives of Australians 2025 report, 83 per cent of Australians polled believe that hackers and other threat actors are becoming more sophisticated in their criminal activities.
This has led to 65 per cent of Australians changing their online behaviour to avoid activities that may lead to harm.
Unfortunately, auDA found that small businesses are lagging behind, with fully 20 per cent of small businesses failing to invest in their cyber security readiness. This is a decrease from the 2021 figure.
Sole traders, in particular, are struggling with cyber security. Just 44 per cent have at least one cyber security practice in place, compared to 89 per cent of small businesses.
“auDA’s Digital Lives of Australians report provides essential insights for industry, policymakers and educators to better understand the online behaviours and attitudes of Australian consumers and small businesses,” auDA CEO Bruce Tonkin said in a statement.
auDA’s research also found that artificial intelligence was a cause for concern. Despite a growing number of Aussies taking advantage of AI (56 per cent over the last 12 months, compared to 45 per cent in the previous period), 64 per cent want stronger safeguards in place, and 70 per cent want more control over how their data is used to train AI models.
“Unlocking the internet’s full potential and boosting digital skills for all Australians requires a concerted effort to build digital trust – a core focus for auDA,” Tonkin said.
“We believe that better collaboration between government, industry, academia and civil society will enhance the internet’s utility and uplift the value it provides to all.”
auDA’s Digital Lives of Australians 2025 report is based on a survey of 40 small businesses and 2,000 consumers. You can read the full report here.
David Hollingworth has been writing about technology for over 20 years, and has worked for a range of print and online titles in his career. He is enjoying getting to grips with cyber security, especially when it lets him talk about Lego.
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