The survey from the European Observatory aims to shed light on the latest trends in the use of legal and illegal online sources among Europeans aged 15 to 24, and their perceptions and behaviours towards counterfeit goods.

The new survey confirmed that 37% of young people bought one or several fake products intentionally in the last 12 months, a significant increase compared to previous years.

Intentional online piracy remains stable, with 21% of young consumers (one in five) acknowledging they accessed pirated content on purpose in the last 12 months.

However, access from legal sources is gaining ground among the younger generations: 60% claimed to have not used, played, downloaded or streamed content from illegal sources in the past year compared to 50% in 2019 and 40% in 2016, thus confirming the trend.

Price and availability continue to be the main reasons for buying fake products and accessing pirated content intentionally. However, social influences, such as the behaviour of family, friends or acquaintances, are gaining significant ground.

For both products and digital content, young people cited personal risks of cyber fraud and cyberthreats as factors that would curb their behaviours. Also, a better understanding of the negative impact on the environment or on society are now more widely mentioned by the young people surveyed. To access the results of the survey, click here.