Americans lead the modern world in expecting a damaging cyberattack that could disable national security, take out energy grids, and interfere with elections, according to a new survey of 26 nations.

A remarkable poll of 27,612 found that about half felt their countries were capable of handling or blocking an attack, said Pew Research Center.

The polling firm found that eight out of 10 Americans feel that it is likely that cyberattacks are likely to occur in the future. The nation tops those who feel that about elections and is in the top group of those who also see attacks on national security and infrastructure in the future.



(Pew Research Center)



“Of the 26 publics surveyed, Americans are among the most likely to say cyberattacks will happen. Roughly eight-in-ten or more in the U.S. say public infrastructure will be damaged (83 percent), national security information will be accessed (82 percent), or elections will be tampered with (78 percent) via cyber attack,” said Pew's global survey.

However, a solid 53 percent believe that the nation is prepared for attacks.

It also found partisan differences on some issues, especially elections. “Democrats in the U.S. are much more convinced of likely election tampering (87 percent) than are Republicans (66 percent), and older Americans are more worried about infrastructure damage,” said Pew.

