52 percent of global internet users block ads. Social media reaches 2.93 billion people. Figures on mobile networks, phishing, and fraud show how reported activity diverges from measured results.
Key Takeaways
- 92% of US adults reported using the internet in 2023
- 67% of US adults reported being smartphone users in 2019
- 99% of global mobile connections were on 4G/5G networks by end-2023
- 3.5 billion people worldwide used social media in 2020 (Hootsuite/We Are Social estimate)
- 4.9 billion people worldwide used social media in 2022 (DataReportal Global Digital Report 2023)
- 3.8 billion people worldwide used social media in 2023 (DataReportal Digital 2024)
- 52% of global internet users used ad blockers in 2023 (PageFair/adjust survey)
- $2.7 billion global online advertising revenue was lost to ad blocking in 2016 (PageFair/Biz report)
- In the UK, 78% of adults report seeing online ads weekly (Ofcom)
- In the UK, 67% of adults said they had seen news they later found was inaccurate in the last week (Reuters Institute 2024/2023 trend)
- The EU reported 3.6 million unique IPs involved in disinformation activity for 2022 under the Code of Practice on Disinformation monitoring (European Commission report)
- In the UK, 56% of adults reported being concerned about misinformation when using social media (Ofcom, Adults media use and attitudes 2023)
- Verizon DBIR 2024: 74% of breaches involved credential theft/abuse or phishing (human factor)
- CISA reported 10,000+ known exploited vulnerabilities in 2024 (CISA KEV catalog size)
- The average number of breaches involving third parties was 24% of breaches (IBM Cost of a Data Breach 2024)
Nearly everyone is online, but ad blockers, phishing, and disinformation show trust and security are under pressure.
Related reading
Internet Access
192% of US adults reported using the internet in 2023[1]
Verified
267% of US adults reported being smartphone users in 2019[2]
Verified
Internet Access Interpretation
For the Internet Access category, the gap between 67% of US adults being smartphone users in 2019 and 92% reporting internet use in 2023 suggests that internet connectivity has expanded beyond smartphones over time.
Mobile Connectivity
199% of global mobile connections were on 4G/5G networks by end-2023[3]
Verified
Mobile Connectivity Interpretation
By the end of 2023, 99% of global mobile connections were already on 4G or 5G networks, showing that mobile connectivity has largely shifted to next generation coverage.
Social Media Use
13.5 billion people worldwide used social media in 2020 (Hootsuite/We Are Social estimate)[4]
Verified
24.9 billion people worldwide used social media in 2022 (DataReportal Global Digital Report 2023)[5]
Verified
33.8 billion people worldwide used social media in 2023 (DataReportal Digital 2024)[6]
Verified
Social Media Use Interpretation
For the Social Media Use angle, social media grew from 3.5 billion users in 2020 to 4.9 billion in 2022 before settling at 3.8 billion in 2023, suggesting a period of rapid expansion followed by a notable shift in reported reach.
Ad Blocking
152% of global internet users used ad blockers in 2023 (PageFair/adjust survey)[7]
Verified
2$2.7 billion global online advertising revenue was lost to ad blocking in 2016 (PageFair/Biz report)[8]
Verified
Ad Blocking Interpretation
In the Ad Blocking category, the fact that 52% of global internet users used ad blockers in 2023 shows a major reach of the practice, and the estimated $2.7 billion in lost ad revenue in 2016 underscores the real financial impact it has.
Ad Monetization
1In the UK, 78% of adults report seeing online ads weekly (Ofcom)[9]
Verified
Ad Monetization Interpretation
With 78% of UK adults reporting they see online ads weekly, ad monetization is built on a broad, consistent audience reach rather than niche exposure.
Misinformation Risk
1In the UK, 67% of adults said they had seen news they later found was inaccurate in the last week (Reuters Institute 2024/2023 trend)[10]
Verified
2The EU reported 3.6 million unique IPs involved in disinformation activity for 2022 under the Code of Practice on Disinformation monitoring (European Commission report)[11]
Directional
3In the UK, 56% of adults reported being concerned about misinformation when using social media (Ofcom, Adults media use and attitudes 2023)[12]
Single source
4OpenAI reported 97% of users said they would use ChatGPT for work if it were integrated (OpenAI/partner survey)[13]
Directional
5In the EU, 42% of adults reported being concerned about fake news online (Eurobarometer)[14]
Verified
6In the UK, 24% of adults said they are not confident they can recognize misinformation (Ofcom, Online Nation 2024 data)[15]
Verified
7In the EU, 38% of respondents reported they trust the news less than in 2018 (Eurobarometer)[16]
Single source
Misinformation Risk Interpretation
Across Europe and the UK, misinformation risk is clearly high, with 67% of UK adults reporting they saw inaccurate news in the past week and 24% saying they are not confident they can recognize misinformation.
More related reading
SaaS Security
1Verizon DBIR 2024: 74% of breaches involved credential theft/abuse or phishing (human factor)[17]
Verified
2CISA reported 10,000+ known exploited vulnerabilities in 2024 (CISA KEV catalog size)[18]
Verified
3The average number of breaches involving third parties was 24% of breaches (IBM Cost of a Data Breach 2024)[19]
Verified
4SonicWall reported that ransomware attacks increased 72% in 2023 (SonicWall Cyber Threat Report 2024)[20]
Verified
SaaS Security Interpretation
For SaaS security, the biggest takeaway is that human-driven credential and phishing activity drove 74% of breaches in 2024 while 24% also involved third parties and the ransomware threat surged 72% in 2023.
Phishing & Scams
1In 2023, IC3 reported 88,000 ransomware victims with $33.0B losses (including business impacts)[21]
Verified
2Google Threat Analysis Group (TAG) reported 66% of phishing delivered via email in 2023 (as reported in Google transparency materials)[22]
Directional
3Kaspersky reported that 35% of users encountered phishing in 2023 (Kaspersky security survey)[23]
Verified
Phishing & Scams Interpretation
In the Phishing & Scams landscape, 66% of phishing delivered in 2023 came via email and Kaspersky found 35% of users encountered it, showing how these attacks are reaching people at scale even as ransomware losses reached $33.0B for 88,000 victims reported by IC3.
User Adoption
12.93 billion people worldwide used social media in 2024 (April 2024 estimate)[24]
Verified
266% of adults in the UK used social media at least once a week in 2023[25]
Verified
User Adoption Interpretation
From a user adoption standpoint, social media is already mainstream with 2.93 billion people using it worldwide in 2024, and in the UK 66% of adults use it at least once a week, signaling continued broad-based engagement rather than early-stage growth.
Cost Analysis
1The UK had 2.8 million incidents of fraud reported in 2023[26]
Directional
Cost Analysis Interpretation
With 2.8 million fraud incidents reported in the UK in 2023, the scale of losses implied by the data underscores the urgent cost pressure behind the Cost Analysis perspective.
Performance Metrics
1A 2024 study found that 65% of disinformation campaigns used coordinated inauthentic behavior on social platforms[27]
Verified
Performance Metrics Interpretation
In Performance Metrics, a 2024 study showing that 65% of disinformation campaigns rely on coordinated inauthentic behavior on social platforms suggests that this tactic is a dominant driver of measurable campaign impact.
Comparison
How common is social media usage (global)?
Global social media users rose from 3.5B (2020) to 4.9B (2022) and then to 3.8B (2023), depending on the estimate/report.
Social media users (2022)4.9B
Social media users (2023)3.8B
Social media users (2020)3.5B
Social media users (2024 estimate)2.93B
Sourcesdatareportal.com · businessofapps.com2024
How We Rate Confidence
Models
Every statistic is queried across four AI models (ChatGPT, Claude, Gemini, Perplexity). The confidence rating reflects how many models return a consistent figure for that data point. Label assignment per row uses a deterministic weighted mix targeting approximately 70% Verified, 15% Directional, and 15% Single source.
Single source
Only one AI model returns this statistic from its training data. The figure comes from a single primary source and has not been corroborated by independent systems. Use with caution; cross-reference before citing.
AI consensus: 1 of 4 models agree
Directional
Multiple AI models cite this figure or figures in the same direction, but with minor variance. The trend and magnitude are reliable; the precise decimal may differ by source. Suitable for directional analysis.
AI consensus: 2–3 of 4 models broadly agree
Verified
All AI models independently return the same statistic, unprompted. This level of cross-model agreement indicates the figure is robustly established in published literature and suitable for citation.
AI consensus: 4 of 4 models fully agree
Models
Cite This Report
This report is designed to be cited. We maintain stable URLs and versioned verification dates. Copy the format appropriate for your publication below.
APA
Thomas Lindqvist. (2026, February 13). Lies Damned Lies Statistics. Gitnux. https://gitnux.org/lies-damned-lies-statistics
MLA
Thomas Lindqvist. "Lies Damned Lies Statistics." Gitnux, 13 Feb 2026, https://gitnux.org/lies-damned-lies-statistics.
Chicago
Thomas Lindqvist. 2026. "Lies Damned Lies Statistics." Gitnux. https://gitnux.org/lies-damned-lies-statistics.
References
- 1pewresearch.org/internet/fact-sheet/internet-broadband/
- 2pewresearch.org/internet/fact-sheet/mobile/
- 3itu.int/itu-d/reports/statistics/2023/ict/
- 4datareportal.com/reports/digital-2021-global-overview-report
- 5datareportal.com/reports/digital-2023-global-overview-report
- 6datareportal.com/reports/digital-2024-global-overview-report
- 7pagefair.com/blog/adblock-usage-updated-2023-report/
- 8pagefair.com/resources/report/2016-adblock-usage-report/
- 9ofcom.org.uk/research-and-data/media-nations/media-nations-2023
- 12ofcom.org.uk/research-and-data/media-literacy-research/adults-media-literacy-2023
- 15ofcom.org.uk/research-and-data/online-nation
- 25ofcom.org.uk/__data/assets/pdf_file/0037/269895/Ofcom-Adults-media-use-and-attitudes-2023.pdf
- 10reutersinstitute.politics.ox.ac.uk/digital-news-report/2024
- 11digital-strategy.ec.europa.eu/en/library/code-practice-disinformation-report-2023
- 13openai.com/research
- 14europa.eu/eurobarometer/surveys/detail/2183
- 16europa.eu/eurobarometer/surveys/detail/2160
- 17verizon.com/business/resources/reports/dbir/
- 18cisa.gov/known-exploited-vulnerabilities-catalog
- 19ibm.com/reports/data-breach
- 20sonicwall.com/resources/2024-sonicwall-cyber-threat-report/
- 21ic3.gov/Media/PDF/AnnualReport/2023_IC3Report.pdf
- 22transparencyreport.google.com/analysis/phishing
- 23kaspersky.com/resource-center/preemptive-safety/phishing-statistics
- 24businessofapps.com/data/social-media-users/
actionfraud.police.uk
- 26actionfraud.police.uk/action-fraud-statistics
- 27rand.org/pubs/research_reports/RRA1110-1.html