Cybersecurity company NordVPN conducted a study of Singapore residents aged 18 to 74 years old in June last year revealing Singaporeans spend almost 54 hours a week online. That’s more than two days a week, amounting to 117 days a year or 27 years of a lifetime. Two in three Singaporeans admitted to relying on the internet on a daily basis.
Singaporeans usually start browsing the internet at 9.17 am and they don’t log off until 9.47 pm. Watching videos is the most popular activity with more than 7 hours per week. In fact, Singapore ranks fourth out of all countries surveyed regarding video watching. They also spend six hours and 16 minutes streaming television shows and films via Netflix, Line TV, iQiyi and Disney+
Scrolling through social media channels such as Facebook, Instagram, TikTok and Line are just an hour less at five hours 32 minutes. Singaporeans spend 2 hours 32 minutes a week shopping online. They are fifth compared to other countries surveyed.
Daniel Markuson, a digital privacy expert at NordVPN shares some tips for a more secure online experience.
- Use Secure Passwords
- Double check and verify links. Avoid suspicious ads, links or emails from people you don’t know.
- Use a VPN to encrypt your connection so that no one can breach your privacy and snatch your personal data.
- Use a secure public Wi-Fi. Hackers set up fake Wi-Fi hotspots to lure unsuspecting web surfers in. Once you log into it, the hacker can see everything you do online.
- Don’t share personal information such as passwords, banking information or address online. Other information can be used to guess answers to your security questions or even give hackers a tip-off when it comes to guessing your password.
“The use of technology and the internet in daily life has increased for almost everyone throughout the Covid-19 pandemic. And even though many of us try to balance our lives and reduce hours spent online, we often face the impossible as we are dependent on the internet both for our professional activities as well as for the majority of our hobbies too,” says Daniel Markuson.
NordVPN provides double VPN encryption and Onion Over VPN that guarantees privacy with zero tracking. Its key feature Threat Protection blocks malicious websites, malware trackers and ads. It has over 5,000 servers in 60 countries worldwide.
