"Companies need to take steps quickly to beef up on-line
security," said Avivah Litan, vice president and research director
at Gartner. "We are seeing unprecedented levels in consumer
transactions on-line. Yet businesses cannot rely on the internet to
lower costs and improve marketing efforts indefinitely if consumer
trust continues to decline."
The survey of 5,000 US adults reveals that an estimated 73
million US adults received an average of more than 50 phishing
e-mails in the last year – an increase of 28% on the previous year.
Around 2.4 million on-line consumers reported losing money directly
because of the attacks.
The effect of this on consumer confidence is now being felt:
according to Gartner analysts, most on-line consumers do not open
e-mail from companies or individuals they do not know from prior
experience. Three of every four on-line shoppers are more cautious
about where they buy goods on-line, and one third report buying
fewer items than they otherwise would because of security
concerns.
More than 80% of US on-line consumers said their concerns about
on-line attacks have affected their trust in e-mail from companies
or individuals they don't know personally, says the report. Of
these consumers, more than 85% delete suspect e-mail without
opening it.
"This figure has serious implications for banks and other
companies that want to use the e-mail channel to communicate more
cost-effectively with their customer base," Ms Litan said. "For
example, a bill sent electronically costs about half of what a bill
costs when sent through regular mail."
"In general, consumers expect companies they do business with to
provide secure on-line communications and to protect consumer data
from thieves at no additional cost to consumers," she added. "They
want guarantees – authentication – from merchants and other
businesses that their web sites are genuine. Consumers want this
reaffirmed every time they go on-line."
The trend is supported by a report released last week by
non-profit business group The Conference Board, and research group
TNS NFO.
According to their Consumer Internet Barometer, growing security
concerns have caused internet users to alter their on-line
behaviour. Nearly 70% have installed additional security software
on their PCs, 54% now “opt-out” of special offers, and 41% are
purchasing less on-line.
Fifty-four percent say they are more concerned today about the
security of their personal information on the internet than a year
ago.
According to Lynn Franco, Director of The Conference Board’s
Consumer Research Center:
“Misplaced or stolen data from major
financial service institutions such as Citigroup, Bank of America
and Wachovia, and this week’s admitted mishandling of data by the
credit card processing company CardSystems Solutions, have
increased consumers’ concerns about on-line security. Consumers
have taken steps to be more cautious, which is a good thing. The
downside is the negative impact to on-line retailers that may slow
the growth of e-commerce.”
