Some people are willing to lie to look good, survey finds

IN AN ongoing quest for social validation, at least 10% of people are willing to lie on social media platforms for attention.

This is according to a survey which also revealed that men are willing to go to more extreme lengths to get more likes on sites such as Instagram, Facebook, Twitter and Snapchat.

The study, which was conducted by the Kaspersky Lab, a global cybersecurity company, interviewed people around the world on their social media habits.

“People are turning to social media to show off to friends, collect as many ‘likes’ as possible and to feel good about themselves,” Evgeny Chereshnev, head of social media at Kaspersky Lab, said.

“But in this quest for social validation, people are playing with the truth and whitewashing their lives.”

The research found that one in 10 people would bend the truth on social media to get more people to like their posts.

“The research also shows that in their pursuit of likes, men are more likely than women to post their privacy away,” Chereshnev pointed out.

Globally, one in 10 men would post a photo of themselves naked, compared to only 5% of women.

And 13% of men post photos of their friends wearing something revealing, the survey showed.

“The research uncovers that men are sensitive about how many likes they get on social media and, in their hunt for likes, men are more likely than women to reveal something embarrassing or confidential about their co-workers, friends or employers,” said Chereshnev.

He added that according to the survey, 14% of men said they would reveal something confidential about a co-worker, compared to 7% of women, while 12% would reveal something embarrassing about a friend, compared to 6% of women.

“Men also get upset if they don’t get the likes they hope for,” said Chereshnev.

This was as the research found that 24% of the men who participated in the survey admitted that they are concerned that if few people like their posts, their friends will think they are unpopular, compared to 17% of women.

In addition, 29% of men admitted they get upset if a person who matters to them doesn’t like their posts.

Chereshnev warned that this risky behaviour on social media can put people at risk.

“In their search for social approval, people have stopped seeing the boundary between what is okay to share and what is better kept private.

“But it is important to protect ourselves, as well as the privacy of others,” he added.

The research also showed that 58% of people feel uncomfortable and upset when their friends post photos of them that they don’t want to be made public.

“All in all, people need to become more aware and cybersavvy about the information they share on social media and install security software on their devices to protect themselves and their loved ones from cyber threats,” said Chereshnev.

They need to be more aware and cyber-savvy on social media