For the latest survey data on Americans and digital knowledge, see “What Americans Know About AI, Cybersecurity and Big Tech.”

A new Pew Research Center survey finds that Americans’ understanding of technology-related issues varies greatly depending on the topic, term or concept. While a majority of U.S. adults can correctly answer questions about phishing scams or website cookies, other items are more challenging. For example, just 28% of adults can identify an example of two-factor authentication – one of the most important ways experts say people can protect their personal information on sensitive accounts. Additionally, about one-quarter of Americans (24%) know that private browsing only hides browser history from other users of that computer, while roughly half (49%) say they are unsure what private browsing does.

This survey consisted of 10 questions designed to test Americans’ knowledge of a range of digital topics, such as cybersecurity or the business side of social media companies. The median number of correct answers was four. Only 20% of adults answered seven or more questions correctly, and just 2% got all 10 questions correct.

As was true in a previous Center survey, Americans’ knowledge of digital topics varies substantially by educational attainment as well as by age. Adults with a bachelor’s or advanced degree and those under the age of 50 tend to score higher on these questions. These are some of the key findings from a Pew Research Center survey of 4,272 adults living in the United States conducted June 3-17, 2019.

Americans are more knowledgeable about certain digitally focused topics than others

Americans’ understanding of these topics varies drastically across the 10 questions presented in the Center’s survey. To begin with, only three questions were answered correctly by a majority of adults. About two-thirds of U.S. adults (67%) know that phishing scams can occur across multiple platforms, including email, text messages, social media or websites. Some 63% of Americans understand that cookies are text files that allow websites to track users’ site visits and activities.

Similarly, 59% know that advertising is the largest source of revenue for most social media sites, rather than things such as exclusive licensing deals (4%) or corporate consulting (2%).

Additionally, 48% of adults correctly answered that a privacy policy is a contract between websites and users regarding how their data will be used, while 45% know that net neutrality refers to the principle that internet service providers should treat all traffic on their networks equally.

Other concepts in the survey are far less familiar to the public. Only three-in-ten adults correctly answered that starting a URL with “https://” means that the information entered on that site is encrypted (30%). A similar share (28%) accurately identified an example of two-factor authentication. (This involves confirming individuals are who they claim to be in at least two of the following ways: inputting information only the user knows, like a password; using an outside source they possess, like a phone number or token key; or through something like a fingerprint.) A somewhat smaller share – 24% of Americans – is aware that “private browsing” or “incognito mode” only hides online activity from other individuals using the same computer. (It does not mean that the user’s activities are masked and not being captured by the websites, the internet provider, or an employer if the browsing is being done on a work computer.)

Americans’ knowledge of the business side of social media companies is also relatively low. Just 29% of Americans correctly named WhatsApp and Instagram as two companies owned by Facebook. And when presented with a photo of Twitter co-founder and CEO Jack Dorsey, only 15% of adults correctly identified him.

It is important to note that while the share of adults who can correctly answer questions about these issues varies across topics, Americans are more likely to express uncertainty about the topic than give inaccurate answers in most cases. Indeed, the two-factor authentication question is the only question answered incorrectly by more than half of respondents.

Nearly one-in-five adults (17%) say they are not sure how to identify an example of two-factor authentication, and 15% say they do not know where phishing scams occur. These shares, however, are relatively small when compared with a number of other questions in this survey where “not sure” responses are far more common than incorrect answers. For example, 49% of adults each indicate they are unsure which two companies from a list of options are owned by Facebook as well as say they do not understand what private browsing entails. Still, the largest share of “unsure” responses comes on the question in which respondents are presented with a photo of Jack Dorsey: 77% report being unsure of whom the photo depicts.

Americans with higher levels of educational attainment are more likely to answer digital knowledge questions correctly

The public’s knowledge of digital topics varies substantially by educational attainment. Adults with a bachelor’s or advanced degree answered a median of six questions correctly, compared with four correct answers by those who have attended college but have not obtained a degree and three by those with a high school diploma or less. Roughly four-in-ten adults with at least a bachelor’s degree accurately answered seven or more questions (37%), compared with 20% of those with some college experience and just 9% of those with a high school education or less.

For all 10 questions, there are double-digit gaps between those who have a bachelor’s or advanced degree and those who have a high school education or less. And on five questions, the difference sits at roughly 30 percentage points. These include how cookies work (where there is a gap of 32 percentage points between those with at least a bachelor’s degree and those with a high school education or less); what the largest source of revenue for social media sites is (32-point gap); what a privacy policy is (30-point gap); what “https://” means in a URL (30-point gap); and what net neutrality is (30-point gap).

Younger adults generally score higher than older adults across digital knowledge questions

Beyond educational differences, digital knowledge also varies by age, though these gaps are less pronounced than those tied to education levels.

For example, 18- to 29-year-olds correctly answered a median of five out of 10 questions, compared with a median of three among those ages 65 and older.

The degree of these differences varies across the full set of questions. There are sizable gaps between the youngest and oldest age groups on knowing how private browsing functions (a 34-point difference); knowing that Facebook owns Instagram and WhatsApp (25 points) or being able to identify an example of two-factor authentication (23 points). But there are other questions with gaps that are far less pronounced – like identifying what “https://” means in a URL or knowing that advertising is the primary way social media companies generate revenue.

The American Trends Panel survey methodology

The American Trends Panel (ATP), created by Pew Research Center, is a nationally representative panel of randomly selected U.S. adults. Panelists participate via self-administered web surveys. Panelists who do not have internet access at home are provided with a tablet and wireless internet connection. The panel is being managed by Ipsos.

Data in this report are drawn from the panel wave conducted June 3 to June 17, 2019. A total of 4,272 panelists responded out of 5,869 who were sampled, for a response rate of 73%. This does not include six panelists who were removed from the data due to extremely high rates of refusal or straightlining. The cumulative response rate accounting for nonresponse to the recruitment surveys and attrition is 5.1%. The break-off rate among panelists who logged onto the survey and completed at least one item is 1.7%. The margin of sampling error for the full sample of 4,272 respondents is plus or minus 1.9 percentage points.

The subsample from the ATP was selected by grouping panelists into five strata so demographic groups that are underrepresented in the panel had a higher probability of selection than overrepresented groups:

• Stratum A consists of panelists who are non-internet users. They were sampled at a rate of 100%.
• Stratum B consists of panelists with a high school education or less. They were sampled at a rate of 98.9%.
• Stratum C consists of panelists that are Hispanic, unregistered to vote, or non-volunteers. They were sampled at a rate of 44.8%.
• Stratum D consists of panelists that are black or 18-34 years old. They were sampled at a rate of 18.2%.
• Stratum E consists of the remaining panelists. They were sampled at a rate of 13.5%.

The ATP was created in 2014, with the first cohort of panelists invited to join the panel at the end of a large, national, landline and cellphone random-digit-dial survey that was conducted in both English and Spanish. Two additional recruitments were conducted using the same method in 2015 and 2017, respectively. Across these three surveys, a total of 19,718 adults were invited to join the ATP, of which 9,942 agreed to participate.

In August 2018, the ATP switched from telephone to address-based recruitment. Invitations were sent to a random, address-based sample (ABS) of households selected from the U.S. Postal Service’s Delivery Sequence File. In each household, the adult with the next birthday was asked to go online to complete a survey, at the end of which they were invited to join the panel. For a random half-sample of invitations, households without internet access were instructed to return a postcard. These households were contacted by telephone and sent a tablet if they agreed to participate. A total of 9,396 were invited to join the panel, and 8,778 agreed to join the panel and completed an initial profile survey. Of the 18,720 individuals who have ever joined the ATP, 13,459 remained active panelists and continued to receive survey invitations at the time this survey was conducted.

The U.S. Postal Service’s Delivery Sequence File has been estimated to cover as much as 98% of the population, although some studies suggest that the coverage could be in the low 90% range.¹

Weighting

The ATP data were weighted in a multistep process that begins with a base weight incorporating the respondents’ original survey selection probability and the fact that in 2014 and 2017 some respondents were subsampled for invitation to the panel. The next step in the weighting uses an iterative technique that aligns the sample to population benchmarks on the dimensions listed in the accompanying table.

Sampling errors and testing of statistical significance take into account the effect of weighting. Interviews are conducted in both English and Spanish, but the American Trends Panel’s Hispanic sample is predominantly U.S. born and English speaking.

In addition to sampling error, one should bear in mind that question wording and practical difficulties in conducting surveys can introduce error or bias into the findings of opinion polls.

The following table shows the unweighted sample sizes and the error attributable to sampling that would be expected at the 95% level of confidence for different groups in the survey:

Sample sizes and sampling errors for other subgroups are available upon request.

© Pew Research Center, 2019

This report is a collaborative effort based on the input and analysis of the following individuals. Find related reports online at pewresearch.org/pewresearch-org/internet.

Primary researchers Emily A. Vogels, Research Associate Monica Anderson, Associate Director

Research team Aaron Smith, Director, Data Labs Lee Rainie, Director, Internet and Technology Research Skye Toor, Data Science Assistant Brooke Auxier, Research Associate

Editorial and graphic design Margaret Porteus, Information Graphics Designer Alissa Scheller, Information Graphics Designer David Kent, Copy Editor

Communications and web publishing Shawnee Cohn, Communications Manager Sara Atske, Associate Digital Producer