When people rely on always-on connectivity, mobile apps, and social platforms, misinformation, ad manipulation, and fraud can spread fast. This page maps how widely these channels are used—such as global social media reach, ad-blocking behavior, and the share of UK adults exposed to inaccurate content. It then connects those patterns to security pressures, from phishing and credential theft to ransomware and third‑party risk.
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)
Ad use is expanding fast, yet misinformation, phishing, and ransomware are rising alongside it.
Related reading
01 · Category
Misinformation Risk7 stats
01
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)
02
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)
03
In the UK, 56% of adults reported being concerned about misinformation when using social media (Ofcom, Adults media use and attitudes 2023)
04
OpenAI reported 97% of users said they would use ChatGPT for work if it were integrated (OpenAI/partner survey)
05
In the EU, 42% of adults reported being concerned about fake news online (Eurobarometer)
06
In the UK, 24% of adults said they are not confident they can recognize misinformation (Ofcom, Online Nation 2024 data)
07
In the EU, 38% of respondents reported they trust the news less than in 2018 (Eurobarometer)
Interpretation
Misinformation Risk Interpretation
Misinformation Risk is clearly widespread, with 67% of UK adults seeing news they later found inaccurate and 24% saying they are not confident they can recognize misinformation, underscoring a significant exposure and capability gap.
02 · Category
Saas Security4 stats
01
Verizon DBIR 2024: 74% of breaches involved credential theft/abuse or phishing (human factor)
02
CISA reported 10,000+ known exploited vulnerabilities in 2024 (CISA KEV catalog size)
03
The average number of breaches involving third parties was 24% of breaches (IBM Cost of a Data Breach 2024)
04
SonicWall reported that ransomware attacks increased 72% in 2023 (SonicWall Cyber Threat Report 2024)
Interpretation
Saas Security Interpretation
For SaaS security, the big trend is that human-driven access failures dominate, with Verizon reporting 74% of breaches tied to credential theft or phishing, while the accelerating threat landscape means ransomware rose 72% in 2023, and third-party exposures still account for 24% of breaches.
More related reading
report visual · Comparison
Social media use kept rising worldwide (2020–2023)
Worldwide, the number of people using social media increased year over year, rising from 3.5B in 2020 to 3.8B in 2023, with 2022 as the peak before 2023.
4.9 billion people used social media in 20224.9B
3.8 billion people used social media in 2023
3.8B
3.5 billion people used social media in 2020
3.5B
source-verifieddatareportal.com2023
04 · Category
Phishing & Scams3 stats
01
In 2023, IC3 reported 88,000 ransomware victims with $33.0B losses (including business impacts)
02
Google Threat Analysis Group (TAG) reported 66% of phishing delivered via email in 2023 (as reported in Google transparency materials)
03
Kaspersky reported that 35% of users encountered phishing in 2023 (Kaspersky security survey)
Interpretation
Phishing & Scams Interpretation
In 2023, phishing stayed the dominant delivery route for scams with Google reporting 66% of phishing coming via email, and this aligns with surveys showing real victim exposure such as Kaspersky’s 35% of users encountering phishing.
05 · Category
Internet Access2 stats
01
92% of US adults reported using the internet in 2023
02
67% of US adults reported being smartphone users in 2019
Interpretation
Internet Access Interpretation
In the Internet Access category, internet use is widespread at 92% of US adults in 2023, and the prior 67% smartphone usage in 2019 suggests that most people are now connected through devices that have been steadily expanding.
06 · Category
Industry Overview8 stats
01
52% of global internet users used ad blockers in 2023 (PageFair/adjust survey)
02
$2.7 billion global online advertising revenue was lost to ad blocking in 2016 (PageFair/Biz report)
03
2.93 billion people worldwide used social media in 2024 (April 2024 estimate)
04
66% of adults in the UK used social media at least once a week in 2023
05
99% of global mobile connections were on 4G/5G networks by end-2023
06
In the UK, 78% of adults report seeing online ads weekly (Ofcom)
07
The UK had 2.8 million incidents of fraud reported in 2023
08
A 2024 study found that 65% of disinformation campaigns used coordinated inauthentic behavior on social platforms
Interpretation
Industry Overview Interpretation
Across the industry, online advertising and digital platforms are being reshaped by massive reach and resistance, with 52% of global internet users using ad blockers in 2023 and social media use hitting 2.93 billion people worldwide in 2024.
Reference
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.
Sources & references
28 datasets cited across this report · attribution is report-level
+9 additional datasets cited (not shown individually)