Odds Are 1 in 4 Americans Will Fall Victim to Online Crime

Aura and Robert Downey Jr. introduce public service campaign to raise awareness of the crisis of online crime facing Americans

BOSTON, Oct. 2, 2023 /PRNewswire/ -- Aura, the leader in intelligent safety, and Aura Board member Robert Downey Jr. today launched a public service campaign to grow awareness of the online crime crisis in America. To kick off efforts and mark the beginning of Cybersecurity Awareness Month, Downey will debut a commercial spot on his social media channels. The spot aims to educate consumers on the risk of online crime, leveraging a new, shocking statistic: the odds of falling victim to online crime in America are 1 in 4¹.

"The odds are so high, it's clear people need help now," said Hari Ravichandran, founder and CEO of Aura. "Last year, Americans lost $10.3 billion to online crime, and the crisis is only getting worse, so we determined we needed to make free support easily accessible to families, as soon as possible."

As part of the campaign, Aura is launching a new, free online safety resource center for all Americans – available starting this week via Aura.com — that provides visitors with step-by-step instructions to help resolve instances of online crime. Beyond instructional articles and directories to available web resources, Aura will debut an AI-enabled chat tool that will provide personalized support to individuals struggling to resolve a digital crime. Finally, Aura will be making free appointments with its highly experienced White Glove Resolution Team available to non-members, should anyone require more hands-on help.

What Are the Odds?
In the brand's new creative spot titled "What Are the Odds?," Downey delves into the reality of being affected by online crime, as compared to other far less likely occurrences that have established themselves as instinctual fears, such as being in a plane crash or routine surgery.

The spot was developed in partnership with Arnold Worldwide, a Havas Creative Group Company.

"It's shocking to see how common online crime has become," said Downey.  "No one is immune to what cybercriminals can do. I'm incredibly passionate about this issue and I want everyone to understand the risks and take action to protect their families."

Consumer Misconceptions
A core aspect of the public service campaign is anchored in the common misconceptions around online crime that Aura hears from users daily. Proprietary research, commissioned by Aura and conducted online by The Harris Poll, spotlights consumer confusion around the major risks facing families today, both online and off. Here are just a few of the common misconceptions we found:

• Online crime is a national crisis that is often overlooked. Nearly one third (29%) of Americans note that they are not concerned about falling victim to online crime, but data suggests they should be. In the past 12 months, 1 in 4 Americans have fallen victim to online crime.²
• It's assumed that older individuals are most at risk. Many believe older adults are most vulnerable to online crime, with 67% of Americans stating they believe older Americans are more likely to fall victim than teenagers are. In reality, everyone is a target amid this crisis. In fact, 1 in 2 Gen-Z individuals (ages 18-26) are actually at high risk for online crime³.
• The younger generation harbors more fears than their elders. Americans ages 18-34 shared they are concerned about never waking up from anesthesia (53%), being in a plane crash (58%), getting stuck in an elevator (62%) and an intruder breaking into their home (66%). At the same time, Americans ages 65+ were minimally concerned (responding that they were "not at all" or "not very" concerned) with these same fears:
  • 69% minimally concerned with never waking up from anesthesia,
  • 78% minimally concerned being in a plane crash,
  • 79% minimally concerned with getting stuck in an elevator,
  • 53% minimally concerned with intruders in their home.

In fact, the only thing these generations seem to agree on is that they are concerned about being duped online. 68% of 18-34 year olds and 69% of 65+ Americans report they are concerned about falling victim to online crime.

To check out Downey starring in "What are the Odds?," and learn more about how Aura can protect your family online, visit aura.com.

ABOUT AURA
Aura is the first truly intelligent safety solution, protecting everything your family does online. With an easy-to-use, AI-powered platform that continuously adapts to evolving online risks, Aura mitigates threats before they become real problems. By focusing on preventative protection – leveraging our #1 rated identity protection services, automatically updating breached passwords found on the dark web, auto-blocking call and SMS scams, and alerting parents to cyberbullying and online predators – Aura puts families a step ahead of cybercriminals for the first time. To learn more, visit www.aura.com.

Aura-Harris Poll Survey Methodology 
This survey was conducted online within the United States by The Harris Poll on behalf of Aura from September 19-21, 2023 among 2,067 U.S. adults ages 18 and older. The sampling precision of Harris online polls is measured by using a Bayesian credible interval.  For this study, the sample data is accurate to within + /- 2.7 percentage points using a 95% confidence level. For complete survey methodology, including weighting variables and subgroup sample sizes, please contact [email protected].

¹ Javelin Proprietary Data. 2023 Identity Fraud Study
² Javelin Proprietary Data. 2023 Identity Fraud Study
³ Aura-Ipsos 2023 Digital Crime Index

SOURCE Aura