THE’Italy gains three positions and places himself in the tenth place worldwide In the National Privacy Test 2026the annual survey conducted by NordVPN on a sample of 23,181 participants to measure their digital skills, cybersecurity and online privacy.
Despite the progress in the general ranking (led by Singapore with 52/100, Poland with 51/100, Germany and Finland tied with 50/100), our country records a overall score of 40%.
Solid foundations, but new risks discovered
The study reveals a clear divide between consolidated habits and reactivity towards new threats:
- Strengths: 97% of Italians know how to create secure passwords and 75% recognize the importance of updating applications (17 points above the world average).
- New threats: only 25% know how to identify deepfakes (-25% compared to the global figure) and just 43% recognize scams carried by artificial intelligence (-31%).
- Practical privacy gaps: just 3% answer correctly about the use of public Wi-Fi, 5% know how to manage app permissions, 10% understand the privacy risks related to AI at work and only 24% know the data stolen by infostealers.
In the overall profile drawn up by NordVPN, 68% of Italian users fall into the category of “Cyber Tourists” (basic awareness but common mistakes), 24% among “Cyber Adventurers”, 6% among “Cyber Wanderers” and just 2% reach the advanced level of “Cyber Star”.
To test your knowledge through a specific quiz or to consult the complete report, you can access the site National Privacy Test created by NordVPN.
How to improve security and privacy
The new report is also the occasion with which NordVPN remembers some useful practices to improve security and privacy. Here are the tips to follow:
- Strong and differentiated passwords: use unique credentials saved in a trusted password manager, enabling passkeys where supported.
- Multi-factor authentication (MFA): activate it to prevent intrusions even in the event of password theft.
- Tool awareness: understand the specific roles of VPNs, tracker blockers and end-to-end encryption, keeping in mind that antivirus alone is not enough for phishing and tracking.
- Permissions management: limit and revoke unnecessary app access (location, contacts, microphone).
- Caution on public Wi-Fi: avoid sensitive operations on unsecured networks and use a VPN.
- Beware of AI: avoid entering confidential business, financial or personal data into artificial intelligence tools.
NordVPN’s comment
Marijus Briedis, Chief Technology Officer (CTO) of NordVPN, highlighted:
“With artificial intelligence making scams increasingly credible and data collection increasingly difficult to perceive, people are asked to ask themselves what information a service really needs, how reliable the content they encounter is, and what protection a privacy tool actually guarantees. The next step in digital literacy is not just recognizing threats, but recognizing when something that appears normal deserves a second look.”
