The front page coverage generated by the recent identity calamities at Choicepoint, Lexis-Nexis, et al. has exposed the digital identity status quo and customer behavior is being affected. From Internet Week:
Fully 6 percent of U.S. adults surveyed by Financial Insights said they had switched banks to reduce the risk of becoming victims of identity theft. In addition, the Framingham, Mass., research firm found that 18.3 percent of consumers had stopped shopping online for the same reason.
So, it looks like we have entered a phase where customers are assessing the identity reliability of their bank and switching if they feel uncomfortable - customer abandonment will do more to help spur digital identity reform than any number of seminars and research projects and we have the thieves and fraudsters (and a number of incompetent Choicepoint employees) to thank.
Also, of interest: I wonder how much not shopping online lowers the chances that you will be a victim of identity theft. Based on these stats, my guess is not much if at all.
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