The survey conducted by Harris Interactive also showed that 29 percent of people in the country believe it is not a problem to be connected online during a wedding and the percentage climbed to 41 percent for family dinners.<\/p>\n
When it came to protection from computer viruses or other Internet-transmitted woes, people said they would rather change a diaper, be stuck in traffic, visit a dentist or get a colonoscopy than clean machines.<\/p>\n
“While some of these results may seem amusing, they show that staying connected is a very serious issue to many, no matter what the circumstance,” said PC Tools vice president of marketing Stephanie Edwards.<\/p>\n
“It is also noteworthy how we entrust our computers and the Internet with our most intimate details — even if we don’t have the time or inclination to worry about computer maintenance or safety.”<\/p>\n
Some 79 percent of people in the United States keep files on personal computers that they don’t want family members, co-workers, employers, or friends to see, according to the survey.<\/p>\n
Nearly half of those surveyed said they would be embarrassed if friends or relatives saw certain files on their computers or smartphones.<\/p>\n
Men proved more concerned than women when it came to being worried about people knowing which websites they had visited, with the percentages being 18 and 12 respectively.<\/p>\n
PC Tools made the findings available on the same day that it released a suite of software tools for protecting computers from spyware, booby-trapped websites, and other Internet perils.<\/p>\n
“We listened to our customers and solved their biggest challenges in developing tools that are simple, effective and affordable,” said PC Tools general manager Tom Powledge.<\/p>\n
“It’s really all about protection and performance minus the fluff and confusion.”<\/p>\n