Almost nine out of ten Greeks (89%) stated they were concerned about privacy and personal data safety when using smart apps and devices, according to a recent Europe-wide survey that asked 8,000 people from eight EU countries.

While a large portion of Greeks queried expressed their fears over matters of cybersecurity and privacy, 62% said they were open to using artificial intelligence (AI) and smart home devices, as long as their privacy was guaranteed.

An interesting finding that emerged from the survey was that 85% of Greeks said that they factored in matters of privacy when choosing gadgets and smart devices, calling the experience “stressful.”

Concerns identified in the survey range from fears of financial theft (68%) to worries about the use of metadata for identification (61%).

While the responses provided revealed a sense of responsibility regarding the management of their digital presence, the users’ behavior when consuming entertainment and leisure on applications of uncertain origin and security, which often extract personal data by misleading users, did not align with their concerns about online security.

The gap in understanding is reflected in the findings of the survey conducted on behalf of Samsung. More specifically, only 1 in 10 respondents in Greece feel “very knowledgeable” about privacy issues, while 39% never think about the security of the smart home devices they use. Similarly high is the percentage (68%) of those who say they need better information on how to protect their personal data.

At the European level, the picture is similar. 88% of Europeans say they are concerned about their privacy, while 75% find managing it stressful and 20% describe it as overly complicated. Despite the rapid expansion of smart homes—with the European market expected to exceed 100 million users by 2028—many still feel insecure about digital risks.

Notably, only 36% of young Europeans think about the security of their smart devices, while nearly half (49%) say they worry daily only about the privacy of their smartphones – ignoring other devices connected to the same digital ecosystem.