Consumers Confident In Security Of Mobile Devices, According To Research
According to recent research conducted by Unisys Corp., the majority of mobile device users worldwide feel safe using their mobile devices for applications, including airline boarding passes; as payments in stores for low-cost items; or to access online banking.
The latest wave of the bi-annual Unisys Security Index found that the overwhelming majority of mobile device users in the United States (83 percent), Spain (80 percent) and the United Kingdom (75 percent) said they would be comfortable using the devices for one or more of the applications. Additionally, about half of device users from the Netherlands (49 percent), Belgium (51 percent) and Germany (52 percent) said they would feel safe using mobile devices for these same services.
Of the 80 percent of Americans who said they own cell phones or handheld devices, 40 percent said they would feel safe using these devices to receive notifications if their credit cards are charged more than a specified amount. And 38 percent said they would feel safe using them to purchase cinema, sporting event or theater tickets.
While there was broad acceptance among device users towards one or more of the applications, users' responses frequently differed as to which of the applications they would feel safe using on their mobile devices. However, there was greater confidence in the security of mobile devices across the board among younger consumers. For example, 76 percent of UK citizens 18-24 years-old said they would feel secure using their mobile devices as airline boarding passes, compared to just under half of all UK device users (49 percent). In the U.S., 53 percent of consumers aged 18-34 years-old said they would feel safe using them to purchase theater, sports or cinema tickets, compared to 38 percent acceptance rate for U.S. citizens overall.
"The majority of mobile device users worldwide feels safe using these devices for financial, travel or purchasing related applications. In addition, comfort levels are higher among younger adults, suggesting that acceptance of these mobile applications will grow in the future," said Mark Cohn, vice president of enterprise security, Unisys. "This data illustrates that personal technologies such as smart phones can empower new business models, because consumers appear confident that they will be able to trust the level of security implemented by their service providers."
Additional key global findings from the Unisys Security Index supplemental questions include:
U.S. citizens reported the highest confidence overall in using mobile
devices, with 83 percent of mobile device users reporting they would feel
safe using them for one of three business applications: airline
boarding passes; as payments in stores for low-cost items; or to
access online banking. Brazil citizens reported the lowest confidence,
with 47 percent of device users reporting they would feel safe using them for
one of those applications.
Of all countries surveyed, device users in the UK were the most
accepting of using their mobile devices to access personal and work
related programs and applications. For example, almost half (49 percent) said
they would feel safe using mobile devices as airline boarding passes,
and 44 percent reported they would feel secure using them for store
purchases.
Access to online banking ranked as Germany's top mobile concern with
only nine percent of device users reporting that they would feel safe
using their mobile devices for this application.
One-quarter of device users in the Netherlands and just under
one-third from Belgium (31 percent) said they would feel safe using their
mobile device to purchase theater, sports or cinema tickets.