Kiwis’ AI fears, work-from-home rate, ‘increasing’ internet use revealed in InternetNZ’s annual survey

New Zealanders are spending more time online than ever. Photo / 123rf

New Zealanders are spending more time online than ever, with 50% of respondents spending four or more hours of their leisure time on the internet each day, according to a study commissioned by InternetNZ.

But that doesn’t necessarily mean doom-scrolling TikTok.

The result is partly the result of the changing way that more traditional media is delivered.

Watching a couple of hours of TVNZ+ on the smart TV in your lounge or listening to Spotify during your commute counts toward your total.

“Streaming of TV, films and music is considered internet use in the survey, an InternetNZ spokesman said.

Source / Internet Insights 2024 survey for InternetNZ

The survey found that women spend more time on social media and messaging than men. Women spend 52% of their online time on social media and 32% on messaging, while men spend 41% and 16% of their time online on social media and messaging respectively, according to Internet Insights 2024, a survey of a representative sample 1001 Kiwis conducted by Verian.

The study also found 53% of people aged 30-39 spend four or more hours online daily, making them the second-highest demographic in terms of time spent online. The most popular online activities for this group were social media, email, streaming TV shows and reading news online. Facebook was the most frequented social media platform, with 58% of respondents checking it at least once per day.

“The amount of time we’re spending online highlights the need to ensure that information we’re consuming is safe, fair and accurate. Governments and civil society need to keep holding the gatekeepers to account and demanding change when it’s needed,” InternetNZ chief executive Vivien Maidaborn said.

Much of the world is moving in the opposite direction, however. In a strongly worded open letter, Netsafe recently criticised Facebook and Instagram owner Meta for following its peers in reducing its harm teams and watering down its content harm policies (chief executive Mark Zuckerberg said protections had sometimes led to errors and free speech needed to be prioritised; the company also recently introduced new protections for teen Instagram users in NZ - even if they’re all predicated on a user giving their correct age, which is taken on faith).

The previous Government put plans for a dedicated internet content regulator on the back-burner, while the current dropped them altogether. And our Government has not followed Australia’s ban on social media for the under-16s, passed last November (due to be implemented later this year, although questions remain about the practicalities; an implementation method has yet to be settled on).

And InternetNZ, the incorporated society that manages the .nz domain, is itself under-seige, with the Free Speech Union seeking to take control of its elected ruling council.

InternetNZ’s survey also found only 35% of people know which organisations, websites or agencies to go to if they need to report something (correct answers include NetSafe, CertNZ – now part of the GCSB, Internal Affairs and the police). The percentage has dropped for a second year in a row.

The survey also showed that young people aged 18-29, Māori, and people with disabilities are more likely to have experienced online harm or harassment.

Former Commerce and Consumer Affairs Minister Andrew Bayly was driving a push to centralise the response to scams before he resigned from cabinet, working now picked up by his successor Scott Simpson.

The Government has so far resisted Netsafe’s call to update and expand the Harmful Digital Communications Act 2015, although it has introduced a bill (still before Parliament) to make stalking a crime (which Netsafe broadly welcomed, although it criticised is lack of civil penalties).

The survey also found that nearly half of New Zealanders who have the option to work from home would like to do so more – but that fewer were. The survey found 38% now work from home some or all of the time, compared to 46% in the 2023 survey. The Government recently ordered civil servants back to the office. BusinessNZ last year said most of it members now favoured glide time over remote working for flexibility. The tightening job market had also also reduced the number of employers offering WFH as a perk or entitlement. Peak-hour traffic stats also indicate that the “old normal” has reasserted itself post-pandemic.

Source / Internet Insights 2024 survey for InternetNZ

Another finding: 68% are worried about the potential malicious use of AI and the lack of regulation surrounding it. While only 10% of respondents expressed more excitement than concern, 44% reported feeling more concerned than excited.

“We’re mostly still getting to grips with AI and exploring what it means to us. The concern that New Zealanders are expressing is reasonable, given the lack of awareness and education or Governmental guidance there is about it,” Maidaborn said.

The Government has adopted a “light touch” approach to AI, with no dedicated new regulations or funding but some existing resources reallocated to promoting awareness.

Chris Keall is an Auckland-based member of the Herald’s business team. He joined the Herald in 2018 and is the technology editor and a senior business writer.