Three-quarters of Dutch fear cyberwar: inoperability of smartphone causes fear

Digital data breaches and cyber attacks increasingly dominate the news and show how vulnerable our digital infrastructures can be. From research from ThePhoneLab shows that 75% of the Dutch are worried about a possible cyberwar. The idea of a temporary Internet outage causes an anxious feeling among an overwhelming majority of Dutch people.

81% feel anxious when apps don’t work

Concerns increase when the scenario becomes concrete. As many as 8 in 10 Dutch people say they feel anxious when they no longer have access to key apps on their smartphones due to a cyber incident.

In a prolonged Internet outage, functional apps prove especially crucial. 92% of Dutch people would miss practical apps such as e-mail, navigation and banking, while only 14% would miss entertainment apps such as TikTok or Netflix.

The contrast with entertainment apps is stark. A majority of 56% say they would not miss apps like TikTok and Netflix in the event of an extended Internet outage. Only 14% say they definitely do miss them.

Social apps and news apps of interest

Communication and information are also important. 78% of Dutch people would miss social apps such as WhatsApp in the event of a prolonged Internet outage. More than seven in 10 Dutch people would not want to do without them in a crisis situation.

For example, one respondent shared, “When asked if I would miss WhatsApp and Instagram: Instagram definitely not. But WhatsApp does because that comprises a large part of my contacts with family, friends, colleagues, etc.”

Boris Blijham, founder of ThePhoneLab, concludes how deeply smartphones are intertwined with our daily lives. “Smartphones are no longer a luxury for many people, but a basic necessity. Especially in a digital crisis, it becomes clear how dependent we are on our phones for access to information, communication and even our money,” Blijham said.