Affluent Americans are more concerned about identify theft than a host of major issues–including terrorism and the ability of Social Security to provide benefits over time–and believe financial institutions should do more to protect them, according to a report by Spectrem Perspective entitled, “Privacy Concerns of the Affluent Investor.”
More than half (52%) of affluent investors say they view identify theft as a concern, placing it ahead theft ahead of another act of terrorism seriously impacting the economy and investment returns (38%); the ability of Social Security to make promised lifetime payments (42%); poor investment performance over the next 1-3 years (24%) and 3-15 years (31%); and a slow economy causing a household member to lose his or her job (24%).
“Barely a generation ago, few Americans had even heard the term identity theft. Today, it is ubiquitous. Affluent individuals, in particular, are expressing considerable fear about identity theft and its potential impact. Indeed, the fact that they are more concerned about identity theft than terrorism is an eye-opener. The vast majority of those polled believe financial institutions should be doing more to protect them from identity theft, underscoring the need for banks, investment firms, insurers and others to take action and deal with this significant concern,” said Catherine S. McBreen, managing director of Spectrem Group.
The survey found that three-quarters (75%) of affluent Americans believe their financial institutions should be doing more to protect their clients from identity theft.