Consumer Attitudes Toward Data Breach Notifications and Loss of Personal Information

Abstract

"RR-1187-ICJ"--Page 4 of cover. "Data breaches continue to plague private-sector companies, nonprofit organizations, and government agencies. Despite the mounting rate of these breaches, the continuing harms imposed on consumers and firms, and over a decade of breach notification laws, very little research exists that examines consumer response to these developments. This report sets out the results of a nationally representative survey of the consumer experience with data breaches: the frequency of notifications of data breaches and the type of data taken; consumer attitudes toward data breaches, breach notifications, and company follow-on responses; and perceived personal costs resulting from the breach, with the goal to establish a baseline of information about consumer attitudes toward data loss and company practices in responding to such events. Key findings include: (1) Twenty-six percent of respondents, or an estimated 64 million U.S. adults, recalled a breach notification in the past 12 months; (2) 44 percent of those notified were already aware of the breach; (3) 62 percent of respondents accepted offers of free credit monitoring; (4) only 11 percent of respondents stopped dealing with the affected company following a breach; (5) 32 percent of respondents reported no costs of the breach and any inconvenience it garnered, while, among those reporting some cost, the median cost was 500 dollars; and (6) 77 percent of respondents were highly satisfied with the company's post-breach response"--Publisher's description. Preface -- Figures and Tables -- Summary -- Acknowledgments -- Introduction: The Purpose of This Study ; The Survey -- Survey Results: Frequency of Data Breach Notifications ; How Respondents Learned of a Breach ; Types of Data Compromised ; Consumer Responses to the Breach ; Consumer Costs of Dealing with a Data Breach ; Consumer Satisfaction with Company Response to the Breach -- Conclusions and Implications: Can a Federal Breach Disclosure Law Help? -- APPENDIXES: A. Survey Instrument ; B. Supporting Tables and Charts -- References.