(Lance Whitney, CNet) A majority 87% of people polled for a new study think their home PCs offer better defense against viruses, malware, and hackers than do their mobile phones. Released today by the National Cyber Security Alliance and Symantec, the study also discovered that people may be overconfident in the power of their computers to protect them as less than half are using full security software.

Though only 24% of those polled said they feel very safe using their home computers to surf the Net, 61% said they feel somewhat safe. In contrast, just 18% said they feel very safe using their mobile phones to access the Web, while only 28% feel somewhat safe.

Only 5.1% of those surveyed think the Internet is safer than it was a year ago, while 68% feel it's about the same, and 21.2% believe it's less safe. Half of those polled cited identify theft as a major concern. Overall, 44% of the respondents see themselves as responsible for their own online safety. Only 30% believe keeping the Internet secure is the responsibility of Internet providers, while just 4% feel it's the government's job.