Young Brits fear cyber-nasties but accept them

Young Brits are running scared of cyber-stalking, net-censorship or sharing their details online, but nearly 80 per cent think that the good things about the internet outweigh the bad.

The Internet Explorer State of the Nation survey of 18-25 year olds (we refuse to call them the net set) discovered that eight out of ten respondents feared growing problems with online lives like privacy and cyber crime.

However, a similar number love the internet and all the information and interactivity that it brings.

The net set

Professor Robert Winston, Professor of Science and Society at Imperial College London and Life Academy judge, commenting on the research said: "The Net Set counts themselves lucky to be the first internet generation.

"Four in five recognise the web gives them access to valuable inspiration and knowledge, helps make changes in the world and even lets their business ideas fly.

"Unlike previous generations, the Net Set has grown up with global knowledge meaning they have bigger dreams, ambitions and the desire to engage with more people.

"The internet has changed the way we converse with each other and this age group has the ability to capitalise on this and create their own empire."

Life academy

Internet Explorer 8 commissioned the study of 2,000 18-25 year olds as part of the launch of its Life Academy which is offering three £10K grants to help young people make their socially responsible ideas a reality.

"To help young Brits on their way, Internet Explorer 8 has launched Life Academy– encouraging 18-25 year olds to grow their socially responsible idea into a project and win £10K to do it," said IE Product Manager Julia Owen.

"Whether people are adventurers, entrepreneurs or creative thinkers, Life Academy can help inspire them to explore their future."

So if you happen to be in that age group and are socially responsible, not only are you in a very, very, very small minority, but you could also bag yourself ten grand.