London - If the thought of losing your mobile phone fills you with an intense feeling of anxiety, it may be some comfort to know you are not suffering alone.
In fact, according to a study, more than half the population has “nomophobia” – a word created to describe the fear of being separated from your mobile.
About 54 percent of Britons worry about being uncontactable, with women 17 percent more likely to find the situation distressing, the survey revealed.
It also showed consumers are now so dependent on their gadgets that one fifth regularly check emails in bed.
A quarter of us will look at work emails while away from home, with men slightly more eager to check emails than woman. And 25 percent of adults say they consult their phones during a dinner date – with women 10 percent more likely to do so than men.
The poll, by web security firm AppRiver, also found 42 percent would feel happier on holiday if they knew they could take their device to the beach. But only half of respondents had secured their mobiles with a password.
Fred Touchette, from AppRiver, said: “With so much information stored on them, when these get lost or stolen and end up in the wrong hands, the information is so easily exploited.” - Daily Mail