Techno babble baffles internet users

Internet users in the UK are confused and more vulnerable to online risks because they don't understand computer jargon.

According to a new Populus survey - Do you speak geek? - of 1,000 adults, for AOL UK, common security jargon such as phishing, rogue dialler, Trojan and spyware are a mystery to most internet users.

Although more than half of those surveyed were internet users and most people are aware that there are a lot of dangers online, understanding the latest buzzwords was crucial to their safety.

While 83 per cent worried about their personal details falling into the wrong hands online, 84 per cent did not understand the latest buzz word that describes one way this can happen - phishing. This describes the recent waves of financial scams via email, which try to trick consumers into handing over their bank account details and even cash.

Only than two in five (39 per cent) of home internet users understand the term Trojan, despite it being one of the most common online security threats. Even though 76 per cent of home internet users are concerned about the number of junk emails they receive, 16 per cent have never heard the term spam.

A quarter of those claiming to know what spyware is were actually unable to identify the correct definition; almost 1 in 10 (9 per cent) guessed it is specialist software to keep an eye on unfaithful partners.

A fifth of all respondents admitted that they would not know how to tackle risks on the internet.

The survey said while this had serious implications for those already online, it was potentially discouraging those not yet using the internet from going online. Matters improved once people were given definitions in plain English.

AOL said it can provide people with explanations of the common terms used in its survey here

Computeractive's more comprehensive online jargon buster can be found herehttp://