CUNA
  • Advocacy
    • Priorities we’re fighting for
    • Actions you can take
  • News
  • Learn
  • Compliance
  • Shop
  • Topics
    • Compliance
    • Credit Union Hero
    • Credit Union Rock Star
    • Credit Union System
    • Directors
    • Human Resources
    • Leadership
    • Lending
    • Marketing
    • Operations
    • Policy & Issues
    • Sales & Service
    • Technology
  • Credit Union Magazine
    • Buyers' Guide
    • Digital Edition
    • Credit Union Hero
    • Credit Union Rock Star
    • Subscribe
    • Advertise
    • Contact
  • Advertise
  • Awards
    • Nominate Credit Union Hero
    • Nominate Credit Union Rock Star
  • Podcasts
  • Videos
  • Contact
Learn More about Member Value

News

Member Benefits
Learn more
Learn more about the benefits of membership.
Home » Mobile Security Jitters
Technology

Mobile Security Jitters

A growing number of consumers tag smartphones as 'unsafe' or 'very unsafe.'

November 1, 2011
No Comments

Researchers at Javelin Strategy and Research were stumped. Despite strong annual increases in smartphone adoption, one of their recent studies showed no corresponding increase in the consumer adoption of either mobile banking or mobile e-commerce. The findings seemed counterintuitive.

“Many of our own researchers are avid mobile banking enthusiasts,” Philip Blank, managing director for security, risk, and fraud at Javelin, wrote in the October issue of Bank Technology News. Blank said he expected his research to show “hordes of consumers running headlong into this brave new mobile world.”

But the survey data didn’t support his expectations. In fact, despite a significant increase in smartphone penetration, mobile banking remained nearly the same from 2010 to 2011. Mobile banking increased only 1% from 2010 to 2011, while smartphone adoption increased more than 25%.

Blank and his team decided to go back to the data to see if they could detect any patterns. They looked at the question of how consumers view the safety of mobile banking while using a smartphone. “When we saw the results,” said Blank, “we were blown away and realized they provided an important key to understanding the findings.”

The data showed that a growing number of consumers believed their smartphones are either unsafe or very unsafe. Essentially, consumers were saying: We’re buying smartphones in droves, but we’re not yet comfortable enough to use them for mobile banking or online purchases, and we perceive these devices to be either unsafe or very unsafe.

Consumers believed that using the mobile phone Web browser is more secure than using a downloaded application by almost a 2-to-1 margin. Given the publicity that malware has recently received, Blank says consumers might have this one right—at least for now. (The survey was taken before a series of bogus applications were removed from the Android Market.)

The interviews contained in our "Mobile banking security" story and Tools of the Trade section (“Mobile providers tackle security concerns") paint a picture of a relatively new technology that invariably comes with consumer security concerns—until that new technology proves itself to be secure.

Just as with online banking, it will take time—and an investment in infrastructure—to convince consumers that mobile banking is secure.

KEYWORDS consumers mobile smartphone

Post a comment to this article

Report Abusive Comment

Credit Union Magazine - Winter 2019

Winter 2019

Alternative lending, compliance management systems, and ideas for boosting credit card portfolios are among the topics of Credit Union Magazine’s Winter 2019 edition.
App •  Digital Edition •  Subscribe

Trending

  • CFPB proposes to raise remittance threshold to 500 transfers

  • Compliance: Using alternative data in underwriting

  • Concerns over credit union-bank mergers, CRA ‘inaccurate, misinformed’

Tweets by CUNA_News

Polls

What's the pace of staff turnover at your CU?

View Results
More

Champion of America’s Credit Unions

Credit Union National Association is the only national association that advocates on behalf of all of America’s credit unions. We work tirelessly to protect your best interests in Washington and all 50 states. We fuel your professional growth at every level and champion the credit union story at every turn.

More CUNA

  • About
  • Careers
  • Contact Us
  • Recommended Websites

Resources for

  • CUNA Board Members
  • Credit Union Advocates
  • Leagues
  • Press
  • Vendors