A survey from data protection company DQM Group is suggesting that public confidence in the ability of a wide range of organisations to protect the security and confidentiality of personal data and details has plummeted, across the board, in the last year. Even the most trusted institutions – GPs and police forces – have experienced a decline.
Following numerous high-profile data security breaches over the past two years, the way organisations handle personal data is weighing heavily on the minds of Britons, it is claimed. While customers expect a level of customisation and convenience from businesses – based on detailed personal information – paranoia concerning the protection of our personal details reigns in equal measure.
Little research work has been done to evaluate the public’s level of trust in different types of organisation, at least specifically in relation to standards around customer data security. To fill this gap, DQM commissioned research which examined the UK public’s different levels of trust in a variety of organisations, both in the private and the public sector. The results were then compared to fieldwork conducted by communications company Pitney Bowes in 2008.
Despite the economic downturn, commercial organisations do not fare too badly, with around half the country happy about data security standards at their bank and building society, two fifths of the population trusting travel companies and credit card issuers, and around a third comfortable with data security at hotels and insurance firms. By far the worst performers, however, were local authorities (23%), central government departments (19%) and social networking sites (15%). To put this finding in perspective, twice as many people trust their credit card provider than they do government departments.
Adrian Gregory, Managing Director, DQM Group, says: “These findings highlight the urgent need to improve standards of personal data security in the private and public sectors alike. In order to start the process of standards improvement, however, organisations need a means of benchmarking their current personal data security standards against an industry and best practice average.
“Unless widespread improvement in data security standards takes place in the next few years, across both private and public sectors, then commercial organisations will stand to lose custom, and government will miss efficiency targets, all because the public is increasingly less willing to risk handing over their personal details.”
Methodology
A 2,000-strong sample of UK adults, nationally representative by age, gender, social class and region, was interviewed during January 2009. The respondents were queried about the level of trust they felt towards a range of different organisations, regarding those organisations’ perceived ability to safeguard individual’s personal data and details, regardless of whether the individual was a customer, a prospect or even an employee. Answers were calibrated on a scale of 1-10, where 1 = extreme distrust, 5 = neither trust nor distrust (neutral), and 10 = very substantial trust. The results are published in two forms in this study:- (1) average score for each type of organisation; (2) percentage of respondents indicating a level of trust in each type of organisation (score over 5).
Sector
Average Scores 2008
Average Scores 2009
GP
7.16
6.42
Police
–
5.64
Building Society
6.82
5.41
Hospital
6.72
5.27
Bank
6.87
4.93
Transport & Travel
5.51
4.81
Hotel
5.09
4.62
Insurance
6.16
4.48
Credit Card
6.49
4.47
e-Commerce
5.60
4.41
Loyalty Scheme
5.24
4.38
Utility
5.74
4.21
Mobile Phone
5.41
4.10
Local Council
4.63
3.88
Central Government
4.49
3.39
Social Network
3.97
2.99
Average
5.37
4.59.
About DQM Group Limited
DQM Group is a data value management business, formed in 1996 to help data owners, publishers and credit and marketing information businesses protect their databases. DQM Group was voted “Data Service Provider of the Year 2007 and 2008” by Data Strategy Magazine and "Supplier of the Year 2006 and 2007" by B2B Magazine.
