Nearly 39% of internet users in Cyprus encountered online messages in 2025 that they considered hostile or degrading towards specific groups or individuals, according to figures published by Eurostat on Friday.
The proportion in Cyprus stood at 38.98%, remaining below the European Union average and showing only a slight increase compared with 2023, when the figure was recorded at 38.45%.
Spike compared to previous year
Across the EU, 42.3% of internet users reported encountering similar hostile or degrading messages online in 2025. Eurostat noted that the EU average was based on data from 20 member states for which figures were available.
The latest figures marked a significant rise compared with 2023, when the corresponding EU-wide rate stood at 36.57%.
According to Eurostat, more than half of respondents in seven EU member states said they had encountered hostile online messages. The highest rates were recorded in Hungary at 60.9%, followed by Finland at 56.7% and Slovakia at 56.2%.
By contrast, the lowest proportions were reported in Latvia at 29.3%, Greece at 29.4%, Germany at 33.7% and Lithuania at 33.8%.
Specific targets
Eurostat said the hostile and degrading messages targeted a range of groups and characteristics. Some 33.7% of users reported content targeting people because of their political or social views, while 25.5% cited racial or ethnic background as the reason for abuse.
A further 23.4% said the messages targeted sexual orientation, while 22.8% referred to religion or personal beliefs.
Other forms of online hostility targeted individuals on the basis of gender (16.9%), disability (11.5%), age (8.8%) or other personal characteristics (8.5%).
CNA
