从TikTok狂欢和YouTube兔子洞到Instagram跟踪和WebMD深潜——我们在网上做了很多事情，以至于我们可能不想向大多数人承认其中的一些。
事实上，我们刚刚在 1,000 名美国人(Americans)中进行了一项调查，发现如果他们认识的人可以访问他们一生的互联网浏览历史，那么十分之七（71%）的人会感到尴尬。我们深入了解美国人(Americans)到底要隐藏什么。
主要发现
- 超过一半的美国人(Americans)宁愿放弃他们的智能手机一年也不愿在网上公布他们的浏览历史。
- 如果人们看到他们在社交媒体上花费了多少时间，大约三分之一的美国人(32%) 会感到尴尬。(Americans)
- 在清除浏览历史记录的人中，有 30% 这样做是为了向配偶隐藏它们。
- 在过去的一年里，三分之二的美国人在网上分享意见变得更加不自在。
美国人(Americans)在互联网(Internet)上做的最尴尬的事情
许多美国人(Americans)对他们在网上所做的事情有自我意识。在我们调查的美国人(Americans)中，如果其他人看到他们花了多少时间在网上阅读某些内容，40% 的人会感到尴尬，如果人们看到他们在社交媒体上花了多少时间，大约三分之一 (32%) 会感到尴尬。
近一半 (45%) 的美国人(Americans)表示，他们在网上做的最尴尬的事情是查找认识的人以了解他们的生活细节并观看令人尴尬的内容。互联网也可以成为私密信息的宝库：超过 1/3 的美国人(Americans)表示他们在网上搜索人际关系、健康和其他个人建议 (38%) 以及研究他们的医疗症状 (36%)。
当美国人(Americans)查找他们认识的人时，他们最想知道他们的长相（56%）和他们的生活方式（54%）。
美国人(Americans)最不好意思花时间 访问的前五个网站是：
- 色情中心
- 红迪网
- 医学博士
- TMZ
- 嗡嗡声
我们发现男性往往对自己的色情习惯更尴尬：51% 的受访者表示他们最尴尬的是花时间在PornHub上，而女性的这一比例为 27%。另一方面，女性可能更羞于与健康相关的问题。在我们调查的女性中，16% 的女性表示她们最尴尬的是花时间在WebMD上，而男性的这一比例为 7%。
美国人(Americans)想要隐藏他们的在线活动(Their Online Activity)，尤其是对家人(Family)和朋友
尽管美国人(Americans)承认他们对我们感到尴尬，但他们真的不想向其他人透露他们的习惯。大多数 (54%) 的美国人(Americans)宁愿放弃使用智能手机一年也不愿在网上公布他们一生的互联网浏览历史。
现在，想象一下您的家人看到您一直在寻找的东西。在接受调查的人中，如果父母看到他们的浏览历史记录，43% 的人会感到最尴尬。(most)因此，我们发现三分之二的美国人清除了他们的浏览历史记录(clear their browsing histories)，三分之一的人至少每周这样做一次。此外，超过十分之七的美国人(Americans)(71%) 使用隐身或私人搜索(incognito or private searches)- 超过一半 (57%) 至少每周使用一次。
美国人(Americans)清除浏览器历史记录并使用隐身搜索的原因略有不同。大多数人 (79%) 使用这些搜索模式来阻止第三方的数据跟踪——而不是向他们的家人或朋友隐瞒。
但在清除浏览器历史记录时，躲避家人绝对是当务之急。在清除历史的美国人(Americans)中，有 30% 这样做是为了向伴侣隐瞒；23% 的人清除他们的历史以向他们的孩子隐瞒；22%来自父母。相比之下，老板和同事并不是一个大问题。
年轻的美国人(Americans)并不为他们在网上花费的所有(All)时间(Time)感到自豪(Proud)
我们知道Z 一代(Gen Z)和千禧一代(Millennial) 美国人使用互联网的方式与 X(Americans)一代(Gen)或婴儿潮一代(Baby Boomers)相比，使用互联网的方式大不相同，而且通常更广泛。伴随着这些差异而来的是对他们习惯的明显不同的态度。超过五分之二 (45%) 的年轻人对他们花在网上阅读某些内容的时间感到尴尬，而在美国(Americans)老年人中这一比例为 26% 。此外，如果人们知道他们在网上查找的对象或看到他们观看的内容类型，将近三分之二 (65%) 的年轻人会感到尴尬。
年轻人花时间在网上寻找人、内容和建议的(Americans)可能性大约是老年人的两倍。他们也是大型在线购物者：超过三分之一 (35%) 的人利用电子商务选项购买他们不会亲自购买的产品，相比之下，只有 17% 的美国(Americans)老年人。
与社交媒体一起成长的一部分是回顾相对较长的帖子历史(relatively long history of posts)- 内容并不总是能很好地老化。近一半 (47%) 的年轻人删除了社交媒体帖子，因为他们对可能看到的人感到尴尬，而在美国老年人中这一比例为 29%。
年轻人(Young)不只是担心他们的父母会在他们的电脑或手机上找到什么。近三分之一 (32%) 的年轻人清除浏览历史记录以向伴侣隐藏，近三分之一 (28%) 的年轻人这样做是为了向朋友隐藏他们的习惯。
女人玩比较游戏(Comparison Game)，而男人(Men)担心他们的(Their) 伴侣(Partners)看到他们在做什么
女性和男性在社交媒体上查看他们认识的人的数量大致相同，但女性（38%）对自己在社交媒体上花费的时间比男性（26%）更尴尬。因此，女性更有可能隐藏她们分享的内容也就不足为奇了。超过一半 (52%) 在社交媒体上隐藏帖子，而男性的这一比例为 43%。
与男性相比，女性更关心她们认识的人在做什么，并使用互联网来追踪信息。在女性中，62% 的人会查找她们认识的人以了解她们的生活方式；40% 看他们的工作；34% 的人检查他们是否有孩子。
当女性进行比较时，男性则担心他们的伴侣会发现他们在做什么。谈到浏览历史，四分之三的男性对自己的浏览历史感到尴尬，四分之一的人表示，如果他们的伴侣看到他们的浏览历史，他们会感到最(most)尴尬（而女性的这一比例为 18%）。与维护目的相比，男性更有可能出于隐私目的清除浏览历史记录。第三个清除他们的历史，专门向他们的合作伙伴隐藏他们。
如果伴侣看到他们在社交媒体上看到的内容，将近三分之一 (29%) 的男性会感到尴尬，而女性的这一比例为 20%。与女性相比，男性也更有可能向伴侣隐藏社交媒体帖子（27% 对 21%），甚至比女性更多地使用匿名社交媒体账户（49% 对 43%）。
美国人(Americans)在网上(Opinions)分享意见(Their)变得越来越(Online)可怕(Getting Scarier)
总而言之，美国人害怕在网上分享他们的意见，67% 的人在过去一年中对分享感到更加不舒服，而 38% 的人担心有人可能会利用他们分享的这些意见来反对他们。有趣的是，这种担忧并没有因党派或性别而有显着差异。
然而，男性和持保守观点的人觉得他们面临更多的歧视。男性比女性更有可能说他们因违反社交媒体行为条款而受到处罚或禁止（15% 对 7%）。共和党人(Republicans)比民主党人(Democrats)更有可能报告处罚或禁令（17% 对 8%）。
匿名社交媒体的使用越来越流行也许并不奇怪。近一半 (47%) 的美国人(Americans)表示匿名使用社交应用，尤其是Reddit、Twitter和Instagram。美国人(Americans)表示，匿名账户可以让他们保持隐私 (78%) 并更自由地交谈 (43%)。
结论
美国人(Americans)承认在网上做了很多令人尴尬的事情。对于他们中的许多人来说，清除浏览历史记录和使用隐身搜索都是为了维护隐私——不是来自黑客，而是来自朋友和家人。如果您想了解更多保护隐私甚至简化计算机功能的方法，请查看我们的计算机提示。
方法：(Methodology:)我们于2022年6 月 21日对 1,001 名(June 21)美国人(Americans)进行了一项调查。性别分类为 49%男性(Men)、48%女性(Women)和 3%非二元性别(Nonbinary)。年龄细分为 10%婴儿潮一代(Baby Boomers)、20% X 世代(Gen X)、45%千禧一代(Millennials)和 24% Z 世代(Gen Z)。政党隶属关系为 48%民主党(Democrat)、33%独立(Independent)、17%共和党(Republican)和 2% 其他。
Survey: The Internet Habits Americans Are Hiding
From TikTok binges and YouTube rabbit holeѕ to Іnstagram stalking and WebMD deep dives — wе do so many things online that we probably wouldn’t want to admit some of them to most peoplе.
In fact, we just conducted a survey among 1,000 Americans and found that just over 7 in 10 (71%) would be embarrassed if someone they knew had access to their lifetime internet browsing history. We dug in to see what exactly Americans have to hide.
Key Findings
- Over half of Americans would rather give up their smartphone for a year than have their browsing history published online.
- About a third of Americans (32%) would be embarrassed if people saw how much time they spent on social media.
- Of those who clear their browsing histories, 30% do so to hide them from their spouses.
- Over the past year, 2 in 3 Americans have become more uncomfortable sharing opinions online.
The Most Embarrassing Things Americans Do on the Internet
Many Americans are self-conscious about what they do online. Of the Americans we surveyed, 40% would be embarrassed if other people saw how much time they spend reading about certain things online, and about a third (32%) would be embarrassed if people saw how much time they spent on social media.
Nearly half (45%) of Americans say the most embarrassing things they do online are look up people they know to get details about their lives and watch embarrassing content. The internet can also be a treasure trove of intimate information: Over a third of Americans said they search for relationship, health and other personal advice online (38%) as well as research their medical symptoms (36%).
When Americans look up people they know, they’re most curious to find out what they look like (56%) and what their lifestyles are like (54%).
The top five websites Americans are most embarrassed to spend time on are:
- PornHub
- Reddit
- WebMD
- TMZ
- Buzzfeed
We found that men tend to be more embarrassed about their porn habits: 51% of those we surveyed said they were most embarrassed to spend time on PornHub, compared to 27% of women. On the other hand, women might be more ashamed of their health-related queries. Of the women we surveyed, 16% reported they were most embarrassed to spend time on WebMD, versus 7% of men.
Americans Want to Hide Their Online Activity, Especially from Family and Friends
Though Americans admitted what they’re embarrassed about to us, they really don’t want to disclose their habits to anyone else. A majority (54%) of Americans would rather give up their smartphone use for a year than have their lifetime internet browsing history published online.
Now, imagine your family members seeing what you’ve been searching for. Of those surveyed, 43% would be most embarrassed if their parents saw their browsing history. Accordingly, we found 2 in 3 Americans clear their browsing histories, and a third do so at least weekly. In addition, just over 7 in 10 Americans (71%) use incognito or private searches — and more than half (57%) use them at least weekly.
Americans clear their browser histories and use incognito searches for slightly different reasons. A majority (79%) use these search modes to prevent data tracking from third parties — not to hide from their families or friends.
But when it comes to clearing browser histories, hiding from family is definitely a priority. Of Americans who clear their histories, 30% do so to hide it from their partners; 23% clear their histories to hide them from their kids; and 22% from their parents. By contrast, bosses and coworkers aren’t a big concern.
Younger Americans Aren’t Proud of All the Time They Spend Online
We know Gen Z and Millennial Americans use the internet much differently — and often more extensively — than Gen Xers or Baby Boomers. With those differences come markedly different attitudes about their habits. More than 2 in 5 (45%) young adults are embarrassed about the time they spend reading about certain things online, compared to 26% of older Americans. Plus, nearly 2 in 3 (65%) young adults would be embarrassed if people knew who they looked up online or saw the kinds of content they watch.
Young adults are about twice as likely as older Americans to spend time looking for people, content, and advice online. They’re also big online shoppers: Over a third (35%) take advantage of ecommerce options to shop for products that they wouldn’t buy in person, compared to just 17% of older Americans.
Part of growing up with social media is looking back on a relatively long history of posts — and content doesn’t always age well. Nearly half (47%) of young adults have deleted a social media post because they’re embarrassed about who might see it, versus 29% of older Americans.
Young adults aren’t just worried about what their parents might find on their computers or cell phones. Nearly 1 in 3 (32%) young adults clear their browsing histories to hide them from their partners, and nearly a third (28%) do so to hide their habits from their friends.
Women Play the Comparison Game, While Men Worry About Their Partners Seeing What They’re up To
Women and men check out people they know on social media about the same amount, but women (38%) are more embarrassed about the time they spend on social media than men (26%) are. It’s no surprise, then, that women are more likely to hide the content they’ve shared. Over half (52%) have hidden posts on social media, compared to 43% of men.
Compared to men, women are more interested in what people they know are up to, and use the internet to track down information. Of women, 62% look up people they know to see what their lifestyles are like; 40% look at their jobs; and 34% check out whether or not they have kids.
While women are making comparisons, men are fretting about their partners finding out what they’re up to. When it comes to browsing history, 3 in 4 men are embarrassed about theirs, and 1 in 4 said they’d be most embarrassed if their partners saw their browsing histories (versus 18% of women). Men are more likely to clear their browsing histories for privacy than for maintenance purposes. A third clear their histories to hide them from their partners specifically.
Nearly a third (29%) of men would be embarrassed if their partners saw what they look at on social media, compared to 20% of women. Men are also a bit more likely to hide social media posts from partners than women (27% vs. 21%) and even use anonymous social media accounts more than women (49% vs. 43%).
It’s Getting Scarier for Americans to Share Their Opinions Online
All in all, Americans are scared to share their opinions online, and 67% have become more uncomfortable sharing in the past year, while 38% worry someone might use these opinions they share against them. Interestingly, this concern doesn’t vary significantly by party or gender.
However, men and people with conservative viewpoints feel they face more discrimination. Men are more likely than women to say they’ve been penalized or banned for violating terms of conduct on social media (15% vs. 7%). Republicans are more likely than Democrats to report penalization or banning (17% vs. 8%).
Perhaps it’s no surprise that anonymous social media use is growing more popular. Nearly half (47%) of Americans report using social apps anonymously, especially Reddit, Twitter, and Instagram. Americans said anonymous accounts allow them to maintain their privacy (78%) and talk more freely (43%).
Conclusion
Americans admit to doing a lot of embarrassing stuff online. For many of them, clearing browsing histories and using incognito searches is all about maintaining privacy — not from hackers, but from friends and family. If you’re wondering about more ways you can protect your privacy or even just streamline your computer’s functionality, check out our computer tips.
Methodology: We conducted a survey among 1,001 Americans on June 21, 2022. The gender breakdown was 49% Men, 48% Women, and 3% Nonbinary. The age breakdown was 10% Baby Boomers, 20% Gen X, 45% Millennials, and 24% Gen Z. The political party affiliation was 48% Democrat, 33% Independent, 17% Republican, and 2% Other.
