Over 42 percent of internet users in Europe faced abusive or hateful messages online in 2025, according to statistics recently released. A report published Friday by Eurostat, the European Union’s statistical agency, revealed that 42.3 percent of internet users across the EU region reported encountering hateful content targeting specific groups or individuals. This report is based on data collected from 20 EU member states.
The data indicates that Hungary has the highest rate of online abuse at 60.9 percent, followed by Finland at 56.7 percent and Slovakia at 56.2 percent. Conversely, Latvia recorded the lowest proportion, with only 29.3 percent of users encountering such content. In Greece, 29.4 percent; Germany, 33.7 percent; and Lithuania, 33.8 percent of users reported similar experiences.
According to Eurostat, individuals are most commonly targeted online based on political or social opinions, accounting for 33.7 percent of cases. Additionally, 25.5 percent of users faced abuse due to ethnic or identity grounds, 23.4 percent due to sexual orientation, and 22.8 percent on religious or belief-related bases. The report also notes that 16.9 percent were targeted based on gender, 11.5 percent due to disability, and 8.8 percent by age. The survey covered internet users aged 16 to 74 who used the internet regularly up to three months before the survey.
