Public willing to shift security blame

Consumers have poor password practices but demand a strong security culture in businesses

Half of consumers have poor password security practices

While almost nine out of ten (88 per cent) of consumers believe they are personally responsible for guarding against identity theft, almost half (47 per cent) are lax in their own password security practices, according to a survey from consultants Accenture.

Thirty-seven per cent of users believe corporations and governments are guilty of deploying insufficient security safeguards.

The results suggest the public are willing to shift the blame for their own security mistakes, providing a wake-up call for businesses that want to maintain customer satisfaction said Accenture.

The survey of U.S. and U.K. consumers found 20 per cent of UK respondents would close a bank account immediately if that bank suffered a security breach.

And almost half of consumers (48 per cent) in the U.S. and the U.K. say they use the latest tools to protect against identity or information theft but still don’t feel safe – suggesting they hold organisations accountable.

Nearly half (46 per cent) of all those who transport their laptops would be interested in getting a free biometric device from their financial institution to register fingerprints for safer online banking.