Over half of UK adults use the same password to access internet sites
One in four use birthdays or names as passwords
Older internet users are turning to social networking to stay in touch
Average UK adult has 237 social network friends
UK adults are risking their online security by using identical or easy to remember passwords on the websites they visit, new Ofcom research reveals.
More than half (55%) of adult internet users admit they use the same password for most, if not all, websites, according to Ofcom's Adults' Media Use and Attitudes Report 2013.
Meanwhile, a quarter (26%) say they tend to use easy to remember passwords such as birthdays or names, potentially opening themselves up to the threat of account hacking.
Remembering passwords also remains a challenge for some, with a quarter (25%) of adult internet users reporting they have problems doing so.
However, Ofcom's report does show that adult internet users are increasingly adopting security methods while going online. Six in ten (62%) say they protect their Wi-Fi internet connection (up from 52% in 2011) and 61% say they make judgements such as checking for padlock symbols or secure system messages before entering personal details (compared to 56% in 2011).
Among smartphone owners, three in four (75%) say they use a screen lock, with half (50%) stating they have PIN protection for their SIM card. This is higher than for non-smartphone users, where these features are used by 40% and 20% respectively.
James Thickett, Ofcom's Director of Research, said: While our research shows that some people are still taking security risks online, they clearly feel these are outweighed by the benefits that the internet brings. We are seeing more and more adults turning to the internet for information and as a way of keeping in touch.
Older users driving increase in social networking
Ofcom's research also reveals that older internet users are increasingly turning to social networking to keep in touch with their friends and family.
Over a third (35%) of 55 to 64 year-old internet users now have a social networking profile up by half in just one year (24% in 2011).
A quarter (25%) of internet users aged 65 and over also say they have a profile. The increase means that overall about two thirds (64%) of all adult internet users say they have a social networking presence, up from 59% in 2011.
Older users, like their younger counterparts, predominantly use social networking as a way of keeping in touch with their friends and family, with six in ten (64%) of those aged over 55 with a profile using the sites to contact friends and family they rarely see.
Ofcom's research also reveals that the average UK adult with a social networking account has 237 friends on their main profile, such as Facebook. Younger adults have more online connections, with the average 16-24 year-old social networker claiming 352 friends, almost three times as many as those aged over 45 (126 friends).
Social networking is also now a part of daily lives for many, as half of adults (50%) with a profile visit more than once a day, up from a third (35%) in 2011. Almost one in ten (9%) adults is an avid user, checking their profile more than ten times a day. Those aged 16-24 are the most likely to do so, with almost a fifth (17%) checking for updates more than ten times daily.
Increase in time spent online, despite one in five visiting fewer than 5 websites a week
Ofcom's research shows that internet usage has continued to grow, with the average adult internet user estimating they now spend almost 17 hours online every week (16.8 hours a week, up from 15.1 in 2011). Meanwhile, reported incidents of spam, viruses and phishing emails by internet users have all remained stable compared to 2011 (52%, 25% and 26% respectively).
Adults are now using a wide range of devices to go online, with almost one in six (16%) using a tablet computer and over half (53%) using their mobile phone. This is even higher for smartphone users, with 86% using their device to go online.
The average adult internet user claims to visit 19 different websites in a typical week, with men visiting more sites than women on average (24 vs 14). However, despite the increasing length of time spent online, over a fifth (22%) of adults say they visit fewer than five websites in a typical week.
ENDS
NOTES FOR EDITORS
Ofcom's Adults media use and attitudes report is available at: http://stakeholders.ofcom.org.uk/market-data-research/media-literacy/media-lit-research/adults-2013/. The report on media literacy covers the use and attitudes of UK adults across the key platforms of the internet, television, radio, games and mobile phones.
1805 adults aged 16 and over were interviewed as part of the research.
Section 11 of the Communications Act 2003 requires Ofcom to promote media literacy in the UK. Under Section 14 (6a) of the Act we have a duty to make arrangements for the carrying out of research into the matters mentioned in Section 11 (1).
Ofcom works with a range of bodies such as UK Council for Child Internet Safety (UKCCIS) (http://www.education.gov.uk/ukccis/) and Get Safe Online (http://www.getsafeonline.org/) to support their work in the areas raised in this research.
Most recent headlines
09/11/2025
Dalet today announced a transformative leap forward for media operations: Agentic Artificial Intelligence (AI) that unifies the Dalet ecosystem under one natura...
21/10/2025
As Amazon's Prime Video prepares to launch its coverage of NBA basketball under a major new deal, Grup Mediapro has announced that it is working with the st...
21/10/2025
ATLANTA Good news for consumers using an Atlanta DTH receiver to watch ATSC 3.0: with a new software update, they will be able to blanket their homes with Wi-Fi...
21/10/2025
While recent news has been heavily focused on Hispanic migration into the U.S., The 2025 Hispanic Market Report from Claritas highlights the fact that this gr...
21/10/2025
MAIDENHEAD, UK RWS has hired Michael Wayne as its head of media and entertainment in Los Angeles where he will lead the company's media localization busines...
21/10/2025
Imagine Communications and Rohde & Schwarz today announced a definitive agreement under which Imagine will acquire Pixel Power Limited, a wholly owned subsidiar...
21/10/2025
Atlanta DTH (ADTH) today announced a major update that will expand the functionality of its NEXTGEN TV receiver by enabling gateway capabilities allowing viewer...
21/10/2025
Heartland Video Systems, Inc. (HVS), a premier video systems integration, consulting, and expert ATSC 3.0 implementation firm announces that it has partnered wi...
21/10/2025
QuickLink, the leading provider of award-winning video production and remote guest integration solutions, today announced the appointment of Austin Hinton as it...
21/10/2025
nternet connectivity startup Miri Technologies Inc. will use this week's NAB Show New York as the launch pad for its latest ground-breaking innovation, the ...
20/10/2025
Inside TAMS: How Time-Addressable Media Stores could redefine sports workflows By Paul Markham
Friday, October 17, 2025 - 08:57
Print This Story
A penalty...
20/10/2025
Transformational production: Inside TVN's remote production push for the DFL...
20/10/2025
How NBC Sports Transitioned Stamford Facility to One Format: 1080p HDRMulti-year plan harmonizes workflows, simplifies operationsBy Ken Kerschbaumer, Editorial ...
20/10/2025
NBA on NBC' Studio Production Team Is Ready for Tip-Off With Coast-to-Coast...
20/10/2025
Under pressure: TVN CEO Markus Osthaus considers the German sports broadcasting ...
20/10/2025
(L-R) Maria Dizzia, Carmen Emmi, and Russell Tovey attend the Plainclothes pre...
20/10/2025
In March, we launched Concerts Near You to help listeners find concerts from their favorite artists. Since then, more than 3 million people have used it to disc...
20/10/2025
Em diversas cidades do Brasil, um movimento tem se fortalecido para celebrar o poder, a beleza e a profundidade da criatividade negra. O Dia AMPLIFIKA, agora em...
20/10/2025
In cities across Brazil, a movement is growing that celebrates the power, beauty, and depth of Black creativity. AMPLIFIKA Day, now in its fifth edition, return...
20/10/2025
Airborne Early Warning and Control aircraft rendering...
20/10/2025
DENVER and MUNICH Imagine Communications today announced its plans to acquire Pixel Power Ltd., a wholly owned subsidiary of Rohde & Schwarz. Financial terms of...
20/10/2025
LOS ANGELES G Morgan has joined Globecast, a provider of broadcast, media and entertainment managed services, as executive vice president of sales, Globecast Am...
20/10/2025
PLYMOUTH, Wisc. Heartland Video Systems and Zixi have partnered to enable broadcast-quality live video delivery over any IP network....
20/10/2025
A. R. Rahman on Facing Fear and Finding the Divine In an interview with Berklee President Jim Lucchese, the Oscar-winning composer reflects on how courage and...
20/10/2025
Monday 20 October 2025
To view this content, please enable our use of cookies. ...
20/10/2025
Rohde & Schwarz transfers Pixel Power to Imagine Communications Companies work collaboratively to ensure continuity and ongoing support for existing customers...
20/10/2025
RT 's Prime Time is set to host the final Presidential Election Debate this Tuesday night, October 21, providing an opportunity to hear directly from Irelan...
20/10/2025
NVIDIA and Google Cloud are expanding access to accelerated computing to transform the full spectrum of enterprise workloads, from visual computing to agentic a...
19/10/2025
Back to All News
Sins of Kujo' Comes to Life in New Live-Action Series Set for Spring 2026
Entertainment
19 October 2025
GlobalJapan
Link copied to cl...
18/10/2025
New England Sports Network (NESN) has chosen Harmonic, working with Astound Business Solutions, as its enterprise technology partner to transform primary distri...
18/10/2025
NEW ORLEANS, La. In the run-up to the start of the NBA season, WVUE-TV and Gray Local Media have announced a deal with DirecTV that will greatly expand access t...
18/10/2025
Berklee Celebrates 40 Years of the Fall Together Concert Faculty composers Bob Pilkington and Greg Hopkins are among the featured artists for this year's ...
17/10/2025
NEP Group Receives New Equity Investment From 26North Partners LP, Co-InvestorsCarlyle remains the largest shareholder as the company prepares for the futureBy ...
17/10/2025
Apple Lands Five-Year Deal for F1 Distribution in the U.S.Besides airing on Apple TV, the sport will be amplified on other Apple servicesBy Ken Kerschbaumer, Ed...
17/10/2025
SVG Sit-Down: Marshall Electronics' Bernie Keach on the Future of PTZ Camera...
17/10/2025
L2 Productions' REMI Facility in Austin Can Produce Content From AnywhereMusic festivals, sports events are produced via flypacks and remote control roomsBy...
17/10/2025
By Lucy Spicer
One of the most exciting things about the Sundance Film Festival...
17/10/2025
(L-R) Christopher Meyer, Addison Timlin, Cooper Raiff, Lili Reinhart, Alyah Chan...
17/10/2025
M sica e arte se uniram em uma noite especial na semana passada na ZIV Gallery, ...
17/10/2025
Music and art came together for one special night last week at ZIV Gallery, an i...
17/10/2025
Spotify and FC Barcelona are extending our partnership through 2030, continuing a collaboration that's redefining how fans, players, and artists connect. Th...
17/10/2025
MURRIETA, Calif. The Sports Fishing Championship (SFC) has deployed DigitalGlue's creative.space storage platform to streamline video production by centrali...
17/10/2025
BELLEVUE, Wash. Football continued to cement its reputation as a bulwark of TV advertising in Q3 2025 with new data from iSpot that showed both the NFL and coll...
17/10/2025
The Sports Fishing Championship (SFC), the premier competitive saltwater fishing series, has transformed its production workflow by adopting creative.space, the...
17/10/2025
QuickLink, a leading provider of award-winning multi-camera video productions and remote contribution solutions, announces the release of StudioPro Version 4, ...
17/10/2025
Although the annual Grammy Awards celebration is best known for recognizing achievements in the recording industry, the show often proves a visual spectacle as ...
17/10/2025
OpenDrives, Inc., a leading provider of software-defined data storage and data services, has promoted Alex Dunfey to Chief Technology Officer (CTO) from his for...
17/10/2025
The University of Arizona (UofA) has significantly upgraded its broadcast communication infrastructure with the integration of Riedel Communications' advanc...
17/10/2025
Harmonic (NASDAQ: HLIT) today announced that New England Sports Network (NESN), owned by Fenway Sports Group and Delaware North, has selected Harmonic as its en...
Over half of UK adults use the same password to access internet sites
