Aussies using free Wi-Fi, Web at work to avoid bill shock

Many believe using workplace data ‘is nowhere near as bad as taking stationery from the cupboard.’

We spend five weeks every year using our employer’s Internet connection for personal reasons, access free Wi-Fi whenever possible and even use our friends’ phones to satisfy our data addictions and avoid bill shock.

More than half (55 per cent) of the people surveyed by telco Optus said they accessed free Wi-Fi on their mobile whenever they could, with one in five using their employer’s Wi-Fi at work to avoid exceeding their data limits and receiving an expensive mobile phone bill.

Almost two-thirds (60 per cent) of Australians who use their mobile phone to access the Internet worry about their data allowance with 33 per cent concerned about getting an unexpected bill for going over their limits, Optus said.

Australians are mostly checking Facebook at work (69 per cent), downloading files for personal use (37 per cent), and printing out maps to avoid using their mobile phones for navigation (33 per cent).

Three in five (59 per cent) full time workers said that employers should allow staff to use the Internet at work for personal use.

Further, 46 per cent believed that using workplace data “is nowhere near as bad as taking stationery from the cupboard for personal use.”

Almost half (45 per cent) use a work-supplied mobile device for personal use and 31 per cent use their device as a data hot spot.

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