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Identity Theft Study Finds Most Americans Feel No More Secure than One Year Ago

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http://www.smartcardstrends.com/det_atc.php?idu=2203

Dallas, May 23, 2005.
Despite a recent push in identity theft prevention awareness by major institutions and government agencies, 75 percent of Americans believe that their identity is no more secure than one year ago, according to a new survey commissioned by Intervoice, (Nasdaq:INTV), the world leader in converged voice and data solutions. The research was compiled by TNS from a group of over 1,000 participants in the United States and displays Americans' attitudes toward identity theft and identity safety.(1) The firm also polled 1,000 consumers in Great Britain during the same time period. The survey validates that consumers do not believe current and traditional methods of security are good enough to protect them against identity theft.

The survey finds that most Americans believe that technology puts them at the greatest risk for identity theft; however, more than 60 percent of consumers report they are not limiting their use of technology-related services such as ATMs, speech recognition systems and phone purchases, or online transactions, in order to minimize this risk.

Other highlights of the survey include:

-- Technology causes the most concern about identity theft, more so than person-to-person interactions, such as dealing with store employees. However, older consumers (60+ years) are more concerned about paper receipt trails than their younger counterparts.

-- Among those who have changed their behavior due to concern over identity theft, approximately one-fifth have stopped making purchases via telephone.

-- Older individuals are more likely to refrain from various activities such as online purchase, online banking and using ATMs, in order to protect themselves from identity theft.

"As identity theft is a significant cost threat to banks, exercising vigilance is critical to protecting funds and identities of customers," said Kenneth Newman, Vice President of Security at American Savings Bank in Hawaii, an Intervoice customer. "Safeguarding customer data has become a priority to ensure that our customer's identities are as secure as possible."

The issue of identity theft has also reached legislative proportions. In March, U.S. Senator Jon Corzine (D-NJ) proposed legislation that calls for commercial entities to establish security systems that safeguard sensitive personal information they maintain on behalf of their customers. It also addresses victim notification and recovery efforts, establishes a regulatory oversight regime for third party data collectors and allows civil actions to be taken by individuals and state attorney generals.

Many American consumers, like their European counterparts, favor a national identification card as a means of protection against identity theft. The survey found that over 40 percent of individuals in the U.S. and more than half in Great Britain would be willing to use this as their primary means of protecting themselves from identity theft. However, most Americans find that responsibility for protecting identity lies primarily with individuals themselves, instead of governments or private enterprise. In fact, 81 percent of consumers believed that they are personally responsible to protect themselves against identity theft. "Researching institutions with the highest security standards" ranked second to a national ID card in terms of methods of protection.

"Make no mistake about it, identity theft poses a very real threat to our economy -- and it is on the rise," Senator Corzine said. "In fact, it's our nation's fastest growing crime. And last year, identity theft complaints to the Federal Trade Commission grew by fifty percent since 2002. With so many instances of fraudsters seeking to abuse an individual's good name, it is clear that more must be done to prevent the proliferation of identity theft."

"Identity theft has been a growing concern for both our customers and their customers. This data proves that more must be done to protect the global consumer's transactions whether they be in-person, over the phone or online," said George Platt, Senior Vice President and General Manager, Enterprise Business Unit, at Intervoice. "New security options and technologies will help prevent this form of crime and ease the consumer's anxiety."

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