- 44% of Americans are reportedly victims
of security breaches compared to 38% of Brits
- 26% of Brits won’t spend with brands
they don’t trust to handle data compared to just 18% of
Americans
- Retail and travel industries top the
least trusted list on both sides of the Atlantic
Transatlantic businesses face greater short-term pain in the US
but less long term retribution in the UK following a security
breach, according to new data from payment security business, PCI
Pal. The research into consumer trust and spending habits was
conducted during the last quarter of 2018 and pointed to some very
clear cultural differences between the two countries.
62% of Americans report that they will stop spending with a
brand for several months following a hack or breach, versus 44% of
Brits. While less prone to react, Brits that do so are likely to
hold onto negative perceptions for much longer than American
consumers. 41% of British consumers and 21% of Americans reportedly
never return to a brand after a hack. A clear warning for any
brands that process payments, the research suggested that
perception alone is enough to impact revenue and reputation -
almost a third (31%) of UK consumers stated that they spend less
with brands they perceive to have insecure data practices, compared
to just 18% of US survey respondents.
The findings suggest that the cost implication of a security
breach remains high in both the US and UK, but brands will have to
work longer and harder to mitigate negative perceptions in the UK
to recover from the reputational costs of an incident.
“While security breaches are not new, consumers’ attitudes
towards them appear to be changing significantly. This seems
particularly prominent in the UK which suggests that the focus on
GDPR has had a tangible impact on how British consumers view the
value of their data, and business’ role in protecting it,”
explained James Barham, CEO at PCI Pal.
Furthermore, more than half (56%) of all UK respondents
reportedly dislike sharing credit card details verbally over the
phone - in contrast just one in four Americans share this concern.
Despite the wealth of online security threats, around a third of
consumers on both sides of The Atlantic prefer online payment
methods - 38% of Americans and 32% of Brits would look for an
online alternative rather than share payment details verbally.
With a long history of pride in the vitality of their local
economies, it should come as little surprise that more than half
(55%) of Brits have more trust in local stores and businesses to
handle their data responsibly - 30% rationalize that local
businesses care more about their reputation while a quarter (25%)
see them as less of a target for would-be hackers. Conversely,
American respondents suggested that national businesses would be
more committed to security protocols (28%) while a quarter (25%)
found comfort in the belief that bigger budgets mean more
investment in security practices.
Some similarities transcended cultural differences - the retail
and travel industries are seen as potentially insecure on both
sides of the pond. 19% of Americans and 40% of Brits see retail as
a risky business when it comes to their personal data; 16% of
Americans and 35% of Brits see the travel sector as the most
insecure. Generally speaking, the UK is leading a growing trend in
all-around awareness and concern in the matter of data security - a
trend to which Americans are now gradually catching on.
“Awareness of data security is something that is on everyone’s
radar, yet our UK and US surveys have highlighted some real
differences of opinions and traits, when comparing attitudes on
data and payment security between the two countries,” explains
James Barham, CEO at PCI Pal.
“UK consumers certainly seem more guarded with providing
personal information, such as payment card details, over the phone.
Similarly, if a security breach has occurred at an organisation,
Brits appear more likely to avoid that organisation in the future,
and instead go elsewhere. In my opinion, 2019 is the year that
organisations need to take steps to provide far clearer assurances
to consumers as to just how their data is being captured, processed
and stored.”
A Psychotherapist’s View
With a clinical and consulting practice in New York City, PCI
Pal invited psychotherapist Dr. Ellyn Gamberg to review the
findings of the survey to compare the behaviors of UK and US
consumers and their attitudes to data and payment security.
In summary, Dr. Gamberg identified the following:
- Both UK and US findings confer that
after a security breach consumer spending behaviors are negatively
affected (how much they spend, where they spend, and how they
spend)
- Online, phone, and in-store security is
of equal concern to all consumers
- Both UK and US consumers are concerned
with how their security is stored in record
- US consumers are more regretful than
those in the UK that they did not do better at vetting companies
regarding their security measures
- UK consumers suppress their negative
feelings regarding a breach longer, and take longer (or never
return) to brands, compared to US consumers.
Dr. Gamberg: “The research indicates differences in measurable
responses between consumers in the UK versus America, such as
spending habits, customer and brand loyalty; and concern over
providing personal data. However, all these behaviors are results
of unconscious and conscious thoughts and feelings and cannot be
accurately measured by self-report. The expression and
internalization of these responses is highly personal and cultural.
As a result, it is critical that this be considered in order to
effectively mitigate past damage, and future efforts, to create
trust.
“In addition to addressing the technical aspects of security,
organizations must address what needs to be done to increase the
emotional security of their customers. Ultimately, becoming
proactive in setting the stage for more favorable, short-term, and
long-term behavioral change will result in more loyal customers,
and increased spending.”
For more information regarding PCI Pal, visit www.pcipal.com or
call +44 (0) 207 030 3770.
Notes to Editors:
Methodology & Market Research
In the United States, PCI Pal conducted market research through
AYTM, surveying 2000 U.S. consumers aged between 18 and 65 years
with annual incomes between $25-$500K to uncover customer service
preferences and security concerns when sharing personal information
online and over the telephone. The survey findings highlighted
changing behaviors and considerations for consumers in 2018 around
data privacy, brand trust and impact on spending resulting from
security breaches.
In the United Kingdom, PCI Pal conducted market research through
Atomik Research, surveying 2,002 U.K consumers aged between 18 and
65 years with annual incomes in excess of £20,000 per annum to
uncover customer service preferences and security concerns when
sharing personal information online and over the telephone. The
survey findings highlighted changing behaviours and considerations
for consumers in 2018 and into 2019 around data privacy, brand
trust and impact on spending resulting from security breaches.
Atomik Research is an independent creative market research agency
that employs MRS-certified researchers and abides to MRS code.
- A copy of PCI Pal’s “This is America”
ebook, which provides a more detailed review of the findings is
available to download here.
- A copy of PCI Pal’s “This is the UK”
ebook, which provides a more detailed review of the findings is
available to download here.
About PCI Pal
PCI Pal is a specialist provider of secure payment solutions for
contact centres and businesses taking Cardholder Not Present (CNP)
payments. PCI Pal’s globally accessible cloud platform empowers
organisations to take payments securely without bringing their
environments into scope of PCI DSS and other card payment data
security rules and regulations.
With the entire product portfolio served from PCI Pal’s cloud
environment, integrations with existing telephony, payment, and
desktop environments are simple and light-touch, ensuring no
degradation of service while achieving security and compliance.
PCI Pal has offices in London, Ipswich (UK) and Charlotte NC
(USA). For more information visit www.pcipal.com or follow the team
on Twitter: https://twitter.com/PCIPAL
View source
version on businesswire.com: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20190226005104/en/
Editor’s Contact:James KimSourceCode Communications for
PCI Palpcipal@sourcecodecomms.com
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