http://news.zdnet.com/2102-1009_22-5575569.html?tag=printthis
ZDNet
By Dawn Kawamoto
URL: http://news.zdnet.com/2100-1009_22-5575569.html
One-fourth of online shoppers have reduced their purchases in the past year
as concerns over identity theft have risen, according to a survey released
Monday.
That increased reluctance to shop online comes as Americans become more
aware of the possible risks, the consumer study by RSA Security indicated.
Some 61 percent of respondents said they feel more informed about identity
theft issues, and 23 percent noted they feel more vulnerable than they did
a year ago.
"Clearly, there's a lot of work to be done if businesses want to build
more online trust with consumers," John Worrall, vice president of
worldwide marketing at RSA Security, said in a statement. "While awareness
of threats remains high, consumer confidence in dealing with those threats
is low."
The third annual study asked more than 1,000 U.S. consumers about how
their attitudes to identity theft, computer attacks and other security
issues had changed over the past two years. The results were released to
coincide with the annual RSA security conference, which gets under way in
San Francisco this week.
Financial institutions, which hope to move more customers to online
banking as a means to cut their operational costs, continue to face
resistance. Twenty-one percent of consumers refuse to use online banking,
the survey found.
Banks have been particular targets of the rapid rise in phishing attacks,
as attackers find that money can be made by luring victims into handing
over sensitive information such as social security numbers and bank account
details.
The survey found that more than half of respondents felt traditional user
IDs and passwords do not provide adequate security. Despite this, people
also said they have not changed their approach to password use. Two out of
three Web users said they use fewer than five passwords for all access to
electronic information. Of the total, 15 percent said they use a single
password. Those results have not changed from last year, RSA said.
The majority of consumers, nearly 70 percent, felt the online merchants
they do business with are falling short on protecting their personal
information.
Another report, released jointly by the Business Software Alliance and the
Information Systems Security Association on Monday, found that companies
are increasingly sending the responsibility of overseeing security to the
executive suite.
Forty-four percent of businesses surveyed last year said their senior
management is responsible for security, up from 39 percent in 2003.
But the number of security professionals who believe a major cyberattack
will occur in the next 12 months has declined over the past year, the
report said. The figure has dropped to 59 percent last year, from 65
percent in 2003.
"This survey demonstrates that awareness and action are replacing fear,"
Robert Holleyman, BSA's chief executive, said in a statement.
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R. A. Hettinga