INTERNET USERS MORE TRUSTING OF FINANCIAL ACTIONS
br /Brandweek Online Newsletter, Thursday, January 2, 2002
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br /NEW YORK – U.S. consumers are more trusting when conducting online transactions than they were a year ago, with the most dramatic surge in trust associated with conducting financial transactions online, according to the “Consumer Internet Barometer,” a new quarterly report on Internet activity. The report is produced jointly by NFO WorldGroup (a division of The Interpublic Group of Cos.), Forrester Research and The Conference Board.
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br /More than 33% of consumers surveyed expressed trust that their online financial transactions are safe, up from 27.5% a year ago. Consumers also expressed a greater degree of trust when purchasing products online with 25% saying that their personal information will be safe when purchasing products online, up from 21.9% a year ago. Satisfaction levels for online financial transactions and purchases also improved over the past year.
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br /”Lack of trust has long been a major barrier to engaging in online transactions,” Lynn Franco, director of the Consumer Research Center of The Conference Board, said in a statement. “Consumers’ concern about privacy of their personal information has a significant influence on their willingness to engage in business exchanges online. But this trust barrier is beginning to erode.”
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