Infographic – Cyberattacks Rated Top Global Threat

Click on image for full-size view (Pew Research Center)

18 June 2022. Large majorities of Americans now consider cyberattacks and disinformation online as their main worldwide threats, according to a recent poll. The survey, conducted in March 2022 by the Pew Research Center, shows seven in 10 adults in the U.S. rate cyberattacks from other countries (71%) and false information spread online (70%) as major threats to the nation.

Not far behind in the American public’s view of global threats are the power and influence of China (67%) and Russia (64%), considered major threats to the U.S. (At the time of the survey, 21-27 March 2022, the attack by Russia on Ukraine was underway.) And well over half of adults in the U.S. also rate the state of the global economy (63%), spread of infectious diseases (57%), and global climate change (54%) as major worldwide threats.

Pew Research Center also tracked changes in these ratings since March 2020, when the Covid-19 pandemic become a major issue. The percentage of U.S. adults considering spread of infectious diseases a major threat dropped from 76 to 57 percent in that period, while global climate change dipped slightly from 58 to 54 percent, and condition of the global economy rose from 55 to 63 percent. The high ranking of cyberattacks as a global threat has remained relatively constant, between 71 and 74 percent, since Pew began asking about it 10 years ago. The report notes that this is one of the few issues with little difference between Republicans and Democrats.

Pew Research Center conducted the online survey from 21 to 27 March 2022, with a sample of 3,581 adults in the U.S. taking part in the organization’s American Trends Panel, recruited through national random sampling of residential addresses.

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