New research commissioned by InternetNZ shows many New Zealanders are concerned about young children accessing inappropriate content online.
A staggering 73% of New Zealanders surveyed said they are either extremely or very concerned about young children accessing inappropriate content - making it the top concern for the fifth year.
Some groups are more concerned about the issue than others, with 80% of women either extremely or very concerned about young children accessing inappropriate content, and those aged between 30-49 registered a rate of 77%.
The research conducted by Verian (formerly Kantar Public) also reveals that nearly one in five New Zealanders have personally experienced online harm or harassment. 24% of young people aged 18-29, 25% of Māori, and 29% of people with a long-term disability or impairment have personally experienced online harm or harassment.
The same research shows that three in five New Zealanders (61%) do the type of work that allows them to work from home. Over half wished they could work from home more. Being required to work in the office by an employer for a certain number of days remains the most common barrier to people working from home more. The research found that face-to-face meetings and employer attitudes to remote working were other common barriers.
When asking New Zealanders how they felt overall about AI, 42% said they were more concerned than excited, and only 11% said they were more excited than concerned about the rapidly growing technology. 40% reported feeling a mixture of both excitement and concern.
While concern runs high, most New Zealanders admitted to not knowing much about AI, with 63% saying they only know ‘a little’ and 13% saying they know nothing at all.
The number of New Zealanders concerned about misinformation has increased significantly, with 65% of New Zealanders surveyed saying they were either extremely or very concerned about misleading or wrong information, up from 59% in the previous year.
InternetNZ Chief Executive, Vivien Maidaborn, believes New Zealanders are right to be aware and worried about the rise of mis and disinformation. "Internet users in Aotearoa deserve information that is accurate and not intended to mislead. This is a systemic issue, and there are multiple issues that the government needs to act on. The longer they leave it, the more New Zealanders will be harmed as a result," Maidaborn said.
People aged 18-29 were the least concerned age group but still registered a rate of 58%, either extremely or very concerned about misleading or wrong information. This contrasts with 68% of women surveyed and 73% of those aged 70+ who were shown to be the groups most concerned, with Māori and Pasifika 60% and 65%, respectively.
Maidaborn says that the perpetrators of mis and disinformation have shifted focus since the pandemic and now target marginalised groups within society. "Since COVID, the key perpetrators of disinformation - people who spread wrong information purposefully - have worked to generalise their disinformation message from health to many other areas including the environment, parliamentary processes and democracy, race and racism."
