Research

35 Internet Privacy Statistics for 2026

Key data on data breaches, VPN adoption, tracking, surveillance and online privacy behaviour. Updated for 2026.

These statistics are sourced from published reports by IBM, Verizon, Statista, HaveIBeenPwned, NordVPN and government cybersecurity agencies. Where exact 2026 figures are unavailable, the most recent published data is used with the source date noted.

🔓Data Breaches

4.45 billion records

were exposed in data breaches in 2023 — the highest ever recorded.

Source: IBM Cost of Data Breach Report 2023

$4.88 million

is the average cost of a data breach in 2024, up 10% year-on-year.

Source: IBM 2024

277 days

is the average time to identify and contain a data breach.

Source: IBM 2024

83%

of organisations have experienced more than one data breach.

Source: IBM 2023

12 billion+

accounts are searchable on HaveIBeenPwned across 700+ known breaches.

Source: HIBP 2026

Credentials and personal data

are the most common targets — stolen in 46% of all breaches.

Source: Verizon DBIR 2024

45%

of breaches involve cloud-based assets.

Source: IBM 2024

🕵️Online Tracking

79%

of websites use third-party tracking cookies to monitor visitor behaviour.

Source: EFF 2024

Top 1,000 websites

average 39 trackers each, most invisible to users.

Source: Ghostery 2024

74%

of tracking is done by just 10 companies — Google, Meta and Amazon dominate.

Source: Princeton Web Transparency Project

Browser fingerprinting

can identify users with 99.2% accuracy even without cookies, according to research.

Source: EFF Panopticlick

$626 billion

is the global programmatic advertising market size — funded by tracking your data.

Source: Statista 2024

🛡️VPN Usage

31%

of internet users worldwide used a VPN in the past month.

Source: GlobalWebIndex 2024

1.5 billion

people globally are estimated VPN users as of 2025.

Source: Statista 2025

38%

of VPN users use them primarily for privacy reasons, not to access geo-blocked content.

Source: NordVPN User Survey 2024

Privacy concerns

are the #1 reason for VPN adoption globally, overtaking streaming in 2023.

Source: NordVPN 2023

30%

of VPN apps on mobile stores were found to contain malware or privacy-violating code.

Source: Top10VPN Research 2023

Free VPNs

are 4x more likely to contain malware than paid VPNs.

Source: CSIRO Research

📱Mobile Privacy

87%

of iOS apps request access to data they do not need for their core function.

Source: Pew Research 2023

72%

of Android apps share location data with third parties.

Source: Yale Privacy Lab

3.5 hours

is the average daily mobile screen time — all tracked by app developers.

Source: App Annie 2024

iPhone users

can have their location tracked by an average of 87 apps simultaneously.

Source: Washington Post Investigation 2023

$10–$1,000

is what data brokers charge to access a single person's detailed profile.

Source: FTC Report 2023

🌐Government Surveillance

Over 100 countries

have mandatory data retention laws requiring ISPs to log user activity.

Source: Privacy International 2024

14 Eyes alliance

countries share intelligence data including internet communications between member states.

Source: Wikipedia / UKUSA Agreement

GDPR fines

reached a record €2.8 billion in 2024 across the EU.

Source: CMS Law 2024

€1.2 billion fine

was issued to Meta in 2023 — the largest GDPR fine ever.

Source: Irish DPC 2023

DNS over HTTPS

adoption reached 35% of all DNS queries in 2024, reducing ISP visibility.

Source: Cloudflare 2024

🔐Passwords & Security

123456

remains the most common password globally in 2024 despite decades of security warnings.

Source: NordPass 2024

65%

of people reuse the same password across multiple accounts.

Source: Google/Harris Poll

80%

of hacking-related breaches involve compromised or weak passwords.

Source: Verizon DBIR 2024

Two-factor authentication

blocks 99.9% of automated account attacks when enabled.

Source: Microsoft Security Research

Password managers

are used by only 32% of internet users despite being freely available.

Source: Dashlane User Survey 2024

$8 per month

is the average cost of a password manager — less than a single data breach costs a victim.

Source: Industry Average 2024

Protect Your Privacy Now

Use our free privacy tools to check your current exposure:

🔍 WebRTC Leak Test 🌐 DNS Leak Test 👆 Browser Fingerprint 📧 Email Breach Check 📍 What Is My IP 🛡️ Recommended VPNs

Frequently Asked Questions

How often is this page updated?

We review and update these statistics annually or when significant new reports are published by major sources (IBM, Verizon, Statista, government agencies).

Can I cite these statistics?

Yes. All statistics are sourced from published public reports. Please cite the original source listed next to each statistic rather than citing this page directly.

What is the most important privacy action I can take?

Based on the data: enable two-factor authentication on all accounts (blocks 99.9% of automated attacks), use unique passwords (65% of people reuse passwords), and use a reputable VPN on public networks.