Three-fifths (59%) of consumers would feel more secure if their personal information was protected by their fingerprint
Despite the introduction of the General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR) in May last year, research from IDEX Biometrics Asa has revealed UK consumers don’t feel their personal information is any safer. In fact, 84% of respondents don’t think GDPR has been taken seriously enough by organisations who hold their data, and its security is still an issue.
This highlights the need for UK organisations, to make it clearer to their customers that they are prioritising GDPR compliance. Taking a security-first approach, by embracing innovations, including fingerprint biometric technology via smart cards, will play a key role in retaining and growing customer trust in data compliance.
Current poor data security practices, such as using locally held PINs or passwords, can leave data easily vulnerable to breaches, and fully justifies the fears held by consumers about the safety of their information. Indeed, three quarters (75%) of consumers admit to being concerned about the security of their personal information, once it has been shared with a company.
However, consumer trust in personal data protection greatly differs depending on the market sector. Almost half (45%) would be most comfortable sharing their personal information with financial service organisations, yet only 15% would say the same about sharing it with hospitality companies (such as bars and restaurants). This suggests organisations that are historically heavily regulated are typically more trusted by consumers. Illustrating the even greater need for companies operating outside these sectors to demonstrate data protection policies are watertight. Only by doing so will they gain consumer confidence in their compliance processes.
Biometric solutions are an effective means to address these concerns. Recent advances in applying fingerprint biometric sensors to smart cards and devices mean authentication credentials are only held on the card itself, removing the need to store data in a central database which is vulnerable to breaches and a potential entry point for hackers.
“We are now one year into a post-GDPR world and our research clearly shows that consumers don’t feel their data is safer for it,” comments David Orme, Senior Vice President at IDEX Biometrics. “Considering the level of trust consumers put in companies to protect their personal information, businesses across all sectors need to address the distinct lack of belief that personal information is more secure because of GDPR.”
“Banks need to ensure they don’t become complacent but continue to live up to consumer faith by remaining vigilant regarding data protection. No matter what the sector, companies need to be more transparent in their approach to data security and embrace fingerprint biometric authentication to improve compliance measures and drive consumer confidence. After all consumer trust and retention is key to creating a competitive edge for any business” adds Orme.
