Elderly use of the internet similar to EU average

Use of the internet by older Cypriots is at similar levels as the EU average, with 58 per cent of the 65 to 74-year age group saying they had gone online, close to the EU27 average of 61 per cent, according to Eurostat on Monday.

Internet has become increasingly important in recent years and particularly so in 2020, following the Covid-19 outbreak and the related confinement and social distancing measures, the EU’s statistical service said.

In 2020, 88 per cent of people aged 16-74 in the EU reported they had used the internet in the last three months; ranging from 70 per cent in Bulgaria to 99 per cent in Denmark.

In Cyprus, the figure stood at 91 per cent.

Although very common among the young, internet use is not as habitual among the older generation.

Eurostat’s figures show that EU-wide, 98 per cent of those aged 16-24 used the internet in the last three months.

In Cyprus, internet use among this age group was 100 per cent, edging down among older age groups. It was 99 per cent for 25-34-year-olds, 98 per cent for those aged 35-44, 95 per cent for those aged 45-54 and 82 per cent for ages 55-64. And for the 65-to-74-year group, it fell to 58 per cent.

Across the EU, internet use varies greatly among the older age groups.

In 2020, Denmark recorded the highest share (94 per cent) of people aged 65-74 who used the internet in the last three months, followed by Luxembourg and Sweden (both 91 per cent), the Netherlands (90 per cent) as well as Finland (88 per cent).

In contrast, only 25 per cent of people aged 65-74 in Bulgaria used the internet in the last three months, followed by those in Croatia (28 per cent) and Greece (33 per cent).