Survey Results Report

This research was commissioned by DigiCert and conducted independently by London-based Vitreous World, which surveyed 5,000 consumers in the United States, the United Kingdom, New Zealand and Australia.

What this report tells us

This report is the trusted reference for our findings on inbox trust and verified brand identity. It covers the audience, screening, and a question-by-question summary. Tables are lightweight to read and simple to repurpose for pages, posts, and decks. The layout matches the questionnaire and global tables to make locating and comparing stats easy.

Who participated

• Total sample size: 5,000 online consumers
• Markets: United States, United Kingdom, Australia, New Zealand
• Audience: Adults 18+ who use a personal email account                                                           

Screening criteria

• 18 years or older
• Lives in US, UK, Australia, or New Zealand
• Uses a personal email account and accesses it at least occasionally
• Passed data quality checks                                                                                                           

Results by question

Each “Summary” shows one strongest number that supports the value of verified brand identity in email.

Q1. In the past 12 months, how often have you received suspicious emails

Summary: 87% at least a few times

Options: Only once, A few times, Many times or regularly, Never, I am not sure

Q2. Have you avoided opening an email because you were not sure it was really from the sender

Summary: 83% Yes

Options: Yes, No, I am not sure

Q3. Have you ever fallen victim to a phishing or scam email

Summary: 75% No

Options: Yes, No, I am not sure

Q4. What are you most likely to do when you receive a suspicious-looking email?

Summary: 62% Delete immediately without opening

Options: Delete immediately, Mark as spam, Report as phishing or scam, Open to examine, Click a link, Ignore, Forward, I am not sure

Q5. Have you ever received a “Nigerian Prince” type scam email

Summary: 55% Recognized as scam and did not engage

Options include recognition vs uncertainty, and whether money or information was lost

Q6. How confident are you at spotting a fraudulent or fake email

Summary: 85% Very or quite confident

Options: Very confident, Quite confident, Not very confident, Not confident at all, I am not sure

Q7. What do you mainly look for to determine if an email is fake

Summary: 55% Poor spelling or grammar or 55% Suspicious sender address

Options: Poor spelling or grammar, Suspicious sender address, Requests for money or personal info, Suspicious links, Unexpected attachments, Generic greeting, Urgent tone, Too good to be true, Missing or incorrect logo or trust mark, Unprofessional formatting, Went to junk or spam

Q8. How much do you trust your email host’s spam or phishing protection

Summary: 64% trust total

Scale: Completely trust, Somewhat trust, Neutral, Do not trust, Do not trust at all

Q9. Who should be most responsible for protecting consumers from scam emails

Summary: 41% Email hosts

Options: Individual brands or companies, Email hosts, Cybersecurity or technology companies, Government regulators, Individual consumers, I am not sure

Q10. Before this survey, were you aware that logos in inboxes can indicate a verified sender

Summary: 57% have seen verified logos at least a few times

Options: Often see, Seen a few times, Aware but never noticed one, Not aware

Q11. If a brand displays an official logo in your inbox, how does it affect your confidence that the email is legitimate

Summary: 57% More confident

Options: More confident, More suspicious, No difference, I am not sure

Q12. When scrolling your inbox, which grabs attention first

Summary: Leading vote getter 37% indicated that a logo makes a difference

Options: Emails that show a brand’s official logo, Emails without a logo but with another cue, No difference

Q13. If two competing brands sent a similar offer, would you be more likely to choose the brand whose logo is displayed in your inbox

Summary: 49% are more likely to choose the brand with a displayed logo

Options include choosing logo brand vs other or no difference

Q14. For each sender type, would you be more likely to open their emails if they displayed an official brand logo in your inbox

Summary: 64% indicated some form of “Yes”, aggregated across all industries

Sender types: Banks, Retailers, Streaming services, Governments, Airlines and travel, Utilities and telecoms, Payment platforms, Food delivery and subscriptions

Q15. If you could trust 100 percent that an email came from a brand, how much more likely would you be to click, reply, or purchase

Summary: 86% More likely total

Options: Much more likely, Somewhat more likely, No difference, Less likely

Q16. If you see a brand’s official logo next to an email in your inbox, how likely are you to believe the message is authentic

Summary: “5 – Neutral” with 35% respondents as the top single point on the 0 to 10 scale

Scale: 0 to 10

Q17. How much more likely are you to click links or act on an email if the sender’s official logo is displayed in your inbox

Summary: 64% More likely to click or act

Options reflect more likely, no difference, less likely

Q18. How much more professional does a brand seem when its logo is displayed in your inbox compared to when it is not

Summary: 75% More professional total

Scale: Much more professional, Somewhat more professional, No difference, Less professional, Much less professional

Q19. If you knew a logo was verified by an independent authority, how much safer would you feel

Summary: 86% Would feel safer

Options reflect safer vs no difference

Q20. How likely are you to recommend that other brands display verified logos in your inbox so you can recognize them before opening

Summary: 67% Likely to recommend

Scale: Very likely, Somewhat likely, Neutral, Somewhat unlikely, Not likely at all