UK Study Finds 66% of the Population Has Nomophobia – Fear of No Phone
First identified in 2008, it would appear nomophobia the fear of being out of mobile phone contact, is sharply increasing in the UK. A recent survey of 1,000 people in employment, conducted using OnePoll, discovered two thirds of respondents fear losing or being without their mobile phone. The study reveals that 41% of people interviewed, in an effort to stay connected, have two phones or more. When asked if theyd be upset if a partner looked at the messages and texts on their phone almost half said that they would. Another interesting revelation from this study is that, with 49% of people getting upset if their messages and texts were viewed by a partner, theyre still lax at securing these devices. Forty-six percent do not use any protection at all; 41% use a four pin access code; and just 10% encrypt their device. A security conscious 3% use two factor authentication.
The first study into nomophobia, conducted four years ago, revealed that 53% of people suffered from the condition and our study reveals this has now risen to 66% in the UK and shows no sign of abating. A reversal on the 2008 findings is that, back then, it was men that were more afflicted yet today its women. Id be inclined to draw the conclusion that, perhaps because more men have two phones, theyre less likely to misplace both and therefore be left phone-less, said Andy Kemshall SecurEnvoy CTO and co founder. There is another study into mobile phone use that found people check their phones, on average, 34 times a day so it wouldnt take long for you to realise if youd misplaced your device.
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