Consumers trust financial institutions to protect data

Retailer data breaches that continue to expose millions of card credentials have increased public attention on cybercrime and data security. Not surprisingly, the high-profile incidents also shook consumer confidence in retailers.

Fortunately for financial institutions (FIs), the majority of consumers still trust them more than almost any other type of organization to protect their data, according to a new study by ACI Worldwide and Aite Group.

The report, Global Consumers: Concerned and Willing to Engage in the Battle Against Fraud, found 58 percent of the more than 6,100 consumers surveyed believe FIs do a better job of safeguarding data than retailers, governments or law enforcement agencies.

Not surprisingly, given the number of recent merchant breach announcements, retailers garnered very little consumer trust when it comes to data security. Specifically, only 55 percent of respondents said they think stores they frequent deploy security systems of any kind to prevent data breaches. Also, 29 percent said they don’t trust retailers to protect their personal and financial data from criminals.

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