·         Users in the Pacific region are more likely to engage in a wide range of online activities.  Across all regions (see editor’s note below), up to half or more of overall users would never engage in such activities as online dating, social networking, adult content, virtual networks, managing stocks online and logging into work remotely. However, the Pacific region (compared to Mountain and West North Central regions) is less inhibited to engage in these activities, most likely due to the West Coast’s more tech-savvy contingency.

·         Trust in the Internet is highest in West North Central, New England and Mountain regions, and lowest in East South Central and East North Central regions.

The research also reveals Internet Trust Index scores for six key subgroups within the Internet user community, which helps reveal how different levels of trust play out.  For instance, two subgroups, “Connected Homemakers” and “Men Who Follow Sports,” are in many ways very different (the first is predominantly women, and the second is 100 percent men), yet they share an Internet Trust Index Score of 81. They also share similar experience levels with technology, optimistic attitudes toward the Internet and its relevance in their lives, and security habits.

But the differences couldn’t be starker between “Super Internet Users” and “Retired, Infrequent Users.” With an average age of 37, Super Internet Users have a VeriSign Internet Trust Index score of 86, one of the highest of all subgroups.  They are savvy, everyday users of the Internet, with 69 percent looking for security seals and other indicators while on the Internet. In contrast, the VeriSign Internet Trust Index score for “Retired, Infrequent Users” is just 20.  As technology novices, they feel the Internet is not as relevant to them, so they tend to be less educated about security indicators and security software.