Businesses overconfident on how much consumers trust them to handle sensitive data

As cybersecurity concerns rise, a new report from CA Technologies reveals a disconnect between consumers and professionals when it comes to security.

As data privacy continues to be a large concern, a Tuesday report from CA Technologies revealed the extreme differences in digital trust between consumers, cybersecurity professionals and business decision makers.

The report defined digital trust as the confidence placed in an organization to collect, store, and use peoples' digital information in a manner that benefits and protects those people.

The report found that consumers have a digital trust index of 61 points out of 100, 14 points below that of business decision makers and cybersecurity professionals, at 75 points. This signals "mismatched perceptions" of perceived consumer trust versus actual consumer trust, a press release noted.

Similarly, findings in the report showed that some organizations see their data protection policies as better than they actually are. Some 90% of organizations, the report found, said they consider themselves good at protecting consumer data. Despite this, 48% of business executives said that their organization was involved in a consumer data breach within the last year.

About half of consumer respondents noted that they either have used or currently use services that were involved in a data breach. Of those, the report noted that 48% have since stopped using the service.

The report found a disconnect between how consumers viewed their digital privacy compared to how professionals do. Only half of consumers surveyed said they were willing to provide personal data for digital services.

This consumer concern is not misplaced. According to the report, 43% of business executives admitted to selling consumer data, including personally identifiable information (PII). However, only 15% of cybersecurity professionals said they knew this was going on.

The press release called for organizations to increase consumer trust by better managing data privacy and security.

"In today's digital world, consumers expect security and privacy to go hand-in-hand with a great user experience," Mordecai Rosen, general manager of security at CA Technologies, said in the release. "A loss of digital trust has implications on all aspects of a business and brand perception, so organizations owe it to their customers and shareholders to get it right."

The big takeaways for tech leaders:

·         Data privacy continues to be a large concern for consumers, and some professionals see their protection plans as better than they actually are, a report found.

·         To better meet consumer expectations, organizations may need to reform their data protection policies.