Over one-tenth of gamers globally – 12%, or 179-million globally – have had their identities stolen, which could be worth as much as $347-billion globally.
In South Africa, 9,6% of gamers have had their ID stolen, according to new research commissioned by Kaspersky and conducted by Savanta in November 2020, which looks at the state of global gaming in 2020.
According to the 5 031 gamers surveyed across 17 countries, 15,9% of gamers from South Africa surveyed have also been bullied while playing (compared to 19% globally).
The trend is the most prevalent in Russia (44%) Saudi Arabia (27%), Turkey (28%) and the US (27%).
Meanwhile, one-third (34,3%) of South African gamers have suffered at the hands of cheaters.
All of these incidents cause stress and anxiety in 26,7% of local gamers – although stress relief is the most prominent reason the majority of them (66,5%) turn to gaming, followed by thrills (57,2%), and then friendship (43,8%).
Marina Titova, head of consumer product marketing at Kaspersky, says: “When gaming, it’s important to consider from the outset how you can best avoid or handle bullies, cheats and hackers. Acting on this early means you can put many of those fears aside and focus on enjoying the game.”