A recent global survey has found a worrying digital security gap: many mobile phone owners don’t use passwords or PINs to secure their devices. This trend is across all regions, income levels and demographic groups, with Sub-Saharan Africa having the worst statistics.

The data shows only 60% of mobile phone users in low- and middle-income countries use some form of password or PIN. Sub-Saharan Africa is the region with the lowest adoption of basic phone security.

Seventeen of the twenty countries with the lowest password usage rates are in Sub-Saharan Africa. But there are exceptions. Botswana, Kenya, Namibia, Senegal and South Africa have relatively higher phone security usage, with about two-thirds of mobile phone owners in these countries securing their devices.

Gender Gap in Digital Security

There is also a gender gap. In several regions – Europe, Central Asia, Middle East and North Africa, South Asia and Sub-Saharan Africa – women mobile phone owners are 10 percentage points less likely to use passwords than men.

This means broader issues around digital literacy and access still affect women more, especially in low-income communities.

A Threat to Mobile Money Safety

The lack of password protection is even more serious in Sub-Saharan Africa where mobile money is so prevalent. According to the World Bank’s Global Findex report, the region has nearly 300 million mobile money users.

But only about half of these account holders secure their phones with a password – leaving many vulnerable to fraud, identity theft and unauthorized transactions.

The report also highlights a recurring problem: in many cases the person setting up the phone or mobile money account is not the actual user. This often leads to scenarios where the user doesn’t know or can’t change the password. In fact, in most economies surveyed, between 15% and 30% of phone owners who use passwords can’t reset or update them without external help.

This lack of control is a big issue around user autonomy and digital trust.

PINs Offer Partial Protection

Despite low phone-level security, most mobile money platforms in the region require a PIN for account access and transactions. While this adds an extra layer of protection, it doesn’t make up for the broader risk of unsecured phones.Good news, women are as likely as men to secure their accounts.