Technology use, up during Covid, will likely continue post-pandemic

If there’s one lasting impact of the Covid-19 pandemic, it’s that many of us will continue to rely on technology and the internet to get us through daily activities like working, shopping and learning.

That was one of the key findings from a national opinion survey conducted by researchers at the University of South Florida’s School of Public Affairs and its Florida Center for Cybersecurity. The survey, released last week, included responses from more than 1,000 voting-age Americans from across the country.

Not surprisingly, Covid has led to an increase in online shopping for most Americans – including older ones – in categories ranging from groceries to clothing to holiday gifts. A majority of survey participants say they’ll continue to shop this way even after the pandemic has passed. 

And shopping from the comfort of home isn’t the only thing we’re likely to keep doing post-pandemic. Of the nearly one-third of respondents who transitioned to working from home at least part time during the pandemic, almost two-thirds anticipate continuing to do the same even after the threat of the virus has diminished. Those in households earning more than $100,000 per year were found to be substantially more likely to report moving to remote work than those earning less.

Along those lines, nearly half of respondents reported using videoconferencing tools more often during the pandemic to stay connected with friends and family, with close to 75 percent saying they’ll keep on Zooming far into the future. 

However, the increased use of technology has had some negative consequences. Just over 15 percent of respondents reported experiencing at least one type of cyber victimization since the pandemic started, including having their banking or financial information stolen, their social media accounts accessed without permission and their work-related videoconferencing calls being infiltrated. Covid-related online scams were fairly common, with roughly 5 percent of respondents reported having someone attempt to steal their federal stimulus check, while 13 percent encountered phishing scams that used the virus as a ploy to gather their personal information.

The first set of survey data came out last month and examined the way people view the Covid vaccine, with the majority of respondents saying they are likely to get vaccinated despite concerns about efficacy and safety. Another data set that was recently released indicated that about two-thirds of Americans have relied on social media “at least a little bit” to get information on the virus, though the majority of those surveyed said they were skeptical of the accuracy of what they read online.