Scottish Household Survey Annual Report

20 Where and How Users Access the Internet Almost all (97 per cent) adults who use the internet access it at home, followed by 58 per cent who access the internet on the move using a mobile phone or tablet. The proportion of internet users reporting that they access the internet using a smartphone increased from 81 per cent in 2018 to 86 per cent in 2019. The proportion of internet users using a smartphone to go online was greater than the proportion who accessed the internet using a PC or laptop (72 per cent). Younger internet users were more likely to access the internet using a smartphone than older users, with 98 per cent of 16-24 year olds using smartphones compared with 47 per cent of adults aged 75+ (an increase from 29 per cent in 2018). Older internet users were more likely than younger users to use a tablet to access the internet. Of those who do not use the internet, the most common reason that could convince people to go online was keeping in touch with family and friends at no extra cost, however this was only reported by eight per cent of this group. Online Safety and Security The most common online security measures taken by adults who make use of the internet were avoiding opening emails or attachments from unknown people (70 per cent) and avoiding giving personal information online (68 per cent). A higher proportion of internet users who were older or were living in the 20% most deprived areas answered that they adopted none of the online security measures mentioned.