Ever readier to shop online. Willing to be tracked online if there is a quid pro quo. But – paradoxically – mounting concerns about privacy and security.
Call that a scrambled, perhaps even contradictory, picture but it is the sharp portrait accounting giant KPMG draws of online consumers in its latest edition of "The Converged Lifestyle."
The report, which KPMP has prepared for several years, offers a vivid recapping of the enormous changes – driven by technology – that have revolutionized retail in the past decade.
In a prepared statement, Tudor Aw, KPMG's European Head of Technology, commented, "The survey reveals that consumers around the globe adopt new technologies at a rapid pace and at the same time are increasingly willing to accept their data to be tracked if they get something in return. This represents a huge opportunity for all players in the digital ecosystem – retailers, advertisers, telecom operators and the financial industry.
"However, the report also shows that consumers' concerns over privacy and data security have increased over the last few years and companies across all sectors need to take this concern seriously. Whether its retailers or banks, consumers want transparency as to what companies do about data security and they want third parties to certify this security."
One of the report's startling findings is that "PayPal is a more preferred method of online payment than credit cards for consumers in Europe and the Middle East."
A related finding is that 66% of respondents in the UK expressed concern that credit card information transmitted over a mobile phone could potentially be intercepted by third parties. Sixty-two percent said they were concerned about "unauthorized parties" accessing personally identifiable information on a mobile phone.
Similarly, 48% expressed a high level of concern about security; 48% had the same concern about privacy.
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