The Government’s upcoming national ID card is the best way to stop identity theft, according to a survey commissioned by Intervoice, a provider of converged voice and data solutions.
The survey found that a national ID card is comfortably the most popular solution to the ID theft issue in the UK. More than half (57 per cent) of the 1,000 adults aged between 16 and 64 polled say this is their first or second preferred method to protect themselves from the threat of identity theft. This response is significantly ahead of any other type of protection measure considered by respondents, with the next most popular method – researching which organisations provide the greatest levels of security – most acceptable to 13 per cent of respondents.
Fears about identity theft have escalated rapidly in recent years. In the UK the government’s controversial identity card plan looks set to be one of the first tests of the newly-returned Prime Minister. In the USA identity theft has become a major political issue and a Bill to address the problem was announced by Senator Jon S Corzine last month.
"Intervoice’s survey shows that people in the UK are becoming more concerned about identity theft, but remain unconvinced by many of the current protection measures", said George Platt, General Manager of Intervoice. "Even if the Government can deliver a majority for its national ID card, the impact on telephone and online identity theft will be minor. In Intervoice’s opinion we need to look towards more realistic alternatives, such as biometric voice verification, to provide reliable security screening for telephone purchases and account queries. This isn’t science fiction, it is in commercial use today."
Intervoice’s survey shows that the preference for a National ID card to reduce the risk of identity theft is equally strong across the country, with little variation across the major regions, varying from 41 per cent in London to 47 per cent in Yorkshire, Humberside and the North East. There is, however, a significant difference of opinion across age bands, with the ID card most popular with 25 to 34 year olds (52 percent) and least so with 16 to 24 year olds (37 percent).
Other findings from the research:
Worries over identity theft are starting to hold back sales. The survey found that one in five (19 per cent) of the sample has already stopped making telephone purchases because of the threat of identity theft and a similar proportion (17 per cent) has moved away from online banking. Online retailing has been dropped by 13 per cent of the sample.
Use of passwords and Personal Identification Numbers (PINs) to prevent identity theft is a flawed strategy. The survey found that nearly six in ten (57 per cent) of UK adults over 16 have given out a password, bank account number or other vital piece of personal information to a friend or family member. In findings that may concern businesses across a range of industries, only 16 per cent of the sample agreed that giving personal details to friends and family is a matter for concern and seven per cent said they would be prepared to stop giving personal details to friends and family as their preferred method of preventing identity theft. The least secure piece of information is the bank account number, which 38 per cent of the sample has provided to a friend of family member.
Technologies such as credit cards readers and online checkout services are causing the greatest concern about identity theft. Asked to rank the source of fears about ID theft 36 per cent of the sample of 1,000 adults aged between 16 and 64 ranked technology as their greatest concern. The perceived risk from technology is also much higher than other threats. The second-ranked concern, paper receipts, scored 25 per cent and the third concern, friends and family, just 16 percent.
UK consumers expect business providers such as banks, telephone companies and utilities to invest in greater security. Only 10 per cent of respondents said they would buy personal technologies to protect themselves. The unwillingness of consumers to take the initiative on identity theft protection is despite the survey’s finding that 74 per cent of the sample believes that they personally have the greatest responsibility for dealing with the threat of identity theft, comfortably outstripping the Government (56 per cent) and business providers (57 per cent).
