Americans are less concerned about having compromising pictures of themselves published online than having their vital financial information swiped.
They fear their electronic financial information could be stolen. However, many don’t take the basic steps to protect it, according to a new MasterCard survey.
“Ninety-two percent of Americans feel they take precautions to protect their financial information, yet roughly half (46 percent) rarely or never change passwords for online financial accounts,” the survey reported.
Still, Americans worry about the security of their personal information, their emails getting hacked and their houses being robbed, the MasterCard Emotion of Safety & Security Survey revealed.
“Perhaps most shocking,” the survey said, “is that 55 percent would rather have naked pictures of themselves leaked online than have their financial information stolen,” said Carolyn Balfany, a senior vice president with MasterCard.
A particularly disturbing number: Forty-four percent of those surveyed said they use the same password across multiple online financial accounts.
“Our survey reveals there’s a sharp contrast between what people say or think they are doing to protect their information and what they actually do,” Balfany said.