Americans open to biometric screening as trust in Web 2.0 falters
Posted on | October 22, 2009 | 1 comment
Not all Americans crave convenience over security.
A new survey by tech systems consulting firm Unisys and Leiberman Research found 93% of 583 respondents open to the notion of using fingerprinting to confirm their identities and secure their data.
Some 58% of those polled by Unisys said they would be willing to provide biometric data to merchants and financial institutions to verify their identity. This includes retinal and perhaps even vascular scanning, akin to this system used to control access to the Port of Halifax.
“We believe that Americans are receptive to biometrics because of legitimate fear about misuse of personal information and pervasive risk of identity theft and identity fraud,” says Mark Cohn, Unisys Vice President of Enterprise Security. “There is a growing awareness that biometric technology in a well-designed system can offer the highest levels of identity protection.”
Public responds to pain points
Americans are beginning to grasp how easy it is for cyber criminals to obtain usernames and passwords and use them to access our banking, social network , free Web mail and other online accounts.
This realization has been agonizingly slow in developing. But another poll out this week shows that the pain points are being felt. Some 81% of the 1,003 respondents surveyed by The Chertoff Group and Penn, Schoen & Berland said they were concerned about the security of their personal data online, with 54 percent indicating they were “very concerned.”
“The poll findings paint a troubling picture, with profound implications for online innovators and the broader technology community for years to come,” says the Chertoff Group’s namesake, Michael Chertoff, former Secretary of the Department of Homeland Security under Pres. Bush.
Budding public outcry
Last Watchdog is hopeful that these polls could signal budding public outcry to slow down the headlong rush by the financial services industry, aided and abetted by tech companies, to advance the use of convenient Web services, without fully addressing the security implications.
It may be that a critical mass of consumers won’t remain oblivious to rising cyber risks much longer. Less than 1-in-10 respondents to the Chertoff poll said they trust Web mail providers, private companies and online brokerages.
The poll found that regional banks and healthcare providers, for the now, are deemed most trustworthy, but only about 30 percent of the respondents said they placed trust in these top-ranking organizations. The Chertoff Poll also found that Americans are:
- Highly concerned about the security of their personal data online.
- Unfamiliar with and concerned about many new technologies.
- Willing to accept more limited capabilities in return for greater security
“The more that the public understands their exposure, the more challenging it will be for companies to convince customers that their personal data is secure,” says Chertoff. “Those companies that demonstrate their commitment and competence in consumer security first will have the advantage in the 21st century.”
President Mark Penn, President of Penn, Schoen & Berlan, says that as Americans move more and more of their lives online “the companies that prioritize providing effective, reliable, and understandable security measures will have the chance to create powerful relationships with consumers.”
Convenience isn’t everything.
By Byron Acohido
Comments
1 Comment »
RSS feed for comments on this post.
mZH2g3 naeffwqcmtzx, [url=http://nefzllijmhub.com/]nefzllijmhub[/url], [link=http://leemoaxzejaj.com/]leemoaxzejaj[/link], http://lqlmljrnlghe.com/
Comment by lzjtyewa — 4/26/2010 @ 11:44 am