3 in 4 EU employees face cyber threats at work: Survey

Three out of four employees in the EU have encountered suspicious emails, messages or links at work, according to a Eurobarometer survey released by the European Commission on Wednesday.

Phishing was the most commonly reported workplace cyber threat, with 39% of employees saying they encountered fraudulent messages or websites aimed at stealing data or gaining unauthorized access.

Phishing is a type of cyberattack in which criminals pretend to be a trustworthy person or organization to trick someone into revealing sensitive information or clicking a malicious link.

Eighteen percent of employees reported attempts to steal personal data; passwords came in at 16%, malware attacks at 17% and artificial intelligence (AI)-generated scams at 15%.

The findings highlighted a gap between employees' awareness of cybersecurity risks and their everyday practices.

While 83% of respondents said the potential consequences of cyberattacks are serious, only 48% said they could recognize an AI-generated fake video.

Some 69% also recognized sharing work-related information on social media as a cybersecurity risk.

Most employees said they knew they should report suspicious emails and install software updates.

Only 54% said, however, that they check the sender before opening links, despite 72% saying they could identify suspicious emails.