IrisⓇ recently published their 5th Annual Holiday Identity Theft Survey results. Unfortunately, shoppers in 2021 are still under stress from the same kind of scammers and fraudsters as they were in 2020. 

Online shopping still rising in popularity

The effects of the Covid-19 pandemic have changed supply chain reliability and have increased use of credit cards for online shopping. 81% of people who have avoided online shopping in the past have become more comfortable shopping online. 74% are using their credit cards online more often due to retail lockdowns, a result which hasn’t declined since last year. 35% of shoppers are storing their credit card information on store websites and apps for quicker shopping experiences. 44% of consumers are planning to use a third-party payment app like PayPal, Venmo, or Apple Pay, while 40% report they won’t use third-party payment apps.

Consumers worry about getting scammed

51% of Americans see identity theft as a threat during this holiday season and 2 out of 3 people are concerned about their personal data being compromised. Close to 4 in 5 consumers are worried about possible scams that take advantage of limited product availability due to supply chain issues. 

Further reading:
7 scams targeting holiday shoppers
Cyber shopping tips for the holiday season

Trust is divided

32% of Americans trust e-retailers the most with their personal data during this holiday shopping season, but nearly as many (29%) consider big box stores the most trustworthy. Local small businesses rank third in trustworthiness at 23%, while department stores trail behind all other retailers at 12%.

Security breaches are a big concern

80% of consumers say their willingness to do business with a retailer will be impacted if they experience a data breach. 13% of this group will absolutely not do business with a breached company again. 61% of consumers would feel more comfortable doing business with retailers if they were offered identity protection services. 

This report presents the findings of an Online CARAVAN® survey conducted by ENGINE Insights among a sample of 1,012 adults 18 years of age and older, comprised of 506 men and 506 women. The online omnibus study is conducted three times a week among a demographically representative U.S. sample of 1,000 adults ages 18 and older. This survey was live on October 25 - 27, 2021.

A similar survey was conducted among a sample of 1,016 respondents from October 9-11, 2017; 1,004 respondents from November 12-14, 2018; 1,004 respondents from October 31 -November 3, 2019; and 1,003 respondents from October 30-November 1, 2020. A year-over-year comparison of total respondent results is provided for questions that remained the same or nearly identical.