Cybercrime is on the rise. According to the 2024 report from the cybersecurity software firm, Bitdefender, SMS scams – often facilitated by artificial intelligence-powered tools – are now the most widespread security event experienced by consumers.

Of all the consumers surveyed, almost a quarter (24%) said they had experienced one or more security incidents in the last 12 months. At 37.6%, Australians are the most affected, ahead of respondents in Spain (27.7%) and the USA (26.7%).