About seventy percent of online adults in the U.S. said Internet security concerns did not deter them from shopping on the Web this past holiday, according to a report issued Friday by the Business Software Alliance, a trade association of software providers. In fact, 38% of those polled said they actually spent more on online purchases in 2005 than they had in 2004.
But 30% of respondents said worries about the security of their personal data did lead them to curtail or eliminate their Internet buying during the holiday shopping season just ended. And one in five online adults said they were “very concerned” or “extremely concerned” about security on the Web during the holidays; that proportion grew to 31% of those respondents 55 and older.
The greatest fear among those who said they shopped online for holiday gifts this season was the threat of finding their data sold to a third party or of receiving unsolicited spam e-mails as a result of purchases they’d made. Only 28% of respondents said they were very or extremely confident that their information would not be resold by Web merchants and only 24% reported feeling very or extremely confident that they would not be targeted with unpermissioned e-mail. By contract, 56% said they were very or extremely sure of their protection from computer viruses; 50% were confident about credit card fraud; and 46% said they were protected from identity theft.
The survey also found that 62% of users believe they are safer shopping from a home computer than from one at work, school or in a public library. This may be because they feel more confident in the on-board security of their home PCs: 88% of respondents said the computers they used for shopping this season had anti-virus software installed, while 78% reported using anti-spyware software, and 77% said they employed spam blocking software.
“The vast majority of shoppers refuse to let security fears stop them, and it appears that many are taking proactive steps to protect themselves and their computers,” said Diane Smiroldo, BSA vice president of public affairs, in a statement. BSA recently launched a Web site, www.bsacybersafety.com, to educate consumers about illegal and deceptive online tactics.
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