Indian women would rather get a root canal done and men would rather drink stale milk than lose their mobile phones, said a Norton Mobile Survey.
Almost 77 per cent of the victims considered the loss of contact information the worst part of the experience, said the survey.
The survey conducted by Symantec, security product and solutions provider, stated that 53 per cent of the adults in India have been victims of mobile phone loss or theft. Despite this, only two in five Indians have a password protecting their devices.
“The survey results are clear: mobile phone loss and theft are significant issues for Indians today. As smartphones become more pervasive in our lives, there is a greater need to protect the data on such devices,” said Gaurav Kanwal, country sales manager, India, consumer products and solutions, Symantec.
Of the affected Indians, one in two was concerned about the exposure or loss of private information, with 74 per cent noting that they could neither remotely lock nor wipe the phone’s memory out after it was lost or stolen. This could account for 82 per cent finding the process of resolving the situation difficult and 90 per cent finding the experience stressful.
Moreover, the study added that resolving the situation costs Rs 9,957, nearly three times the amount Indians are willing to pay. The study said more than half of the victims were willing to pay a ransom (an average of Rs 3,692) to resolve the situation. However, in reality victims end up paying nearly three times that amount (an average of Rs 9,957). Despite this almost three in 10 Indians said the situation was never resolved and in cases where it was resolved, 12 per cent said it took more than a week.
Getting help is not entirely easy either; despite high levels of inconvenience, people feel that a limited number of resources are available to help in such occasions. For most Indians, mobile providers are the main source of contact, followed by family and friends.
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The Norton Mobile Survey is based on research conducted in January 2011 by The Leading Edge, an independent market research firm, on behalf of Symantec Corporation. The Leading Edge conducted an online survey among 500 adults, between the age of 18 and 54, within each of the following six markets: Singapore, India, Australia, China, Taiwan and Japan.
Indians have some of the highest confidence levels in the region with regard to the use of software services on their mobile phones. Six out of 10 Indians are comfortable with software on their phones that identify their location and a online banking. With mobile phones becoming such a central device in the lives of consumers, it is important to protect these devices, especially the data that is stored on such devices.
The study also found that Indians are more likely to have a password if they currently own a smartphone or have lost their mobile phone or had it stolen in the past. Currently, only 42 per cent of users in India have password-protected mobile phones — of which, 61 per cent currently own a smartphone and another 50 per cent were previously victims of mobile phone loss or theft.