July 09--Would you rather have naked photos of yourself leaked or your financial info hacked?
If you'd opt to have pictures of you in your birthday suit for all of the Internet to enjoy, you're not alone, according to a survey released this week.
In fact, 55 percent of consumers said they'd rather have naked photos floating on the Web than have their financial information stolen or compromised, according to a MasterCard survey, released Wednesday.
The study, according to MasterCard, shows a sharp contrast between what consumers say and what they do to protect their personal information.
Most consumers, 77 percent, are concerned that their financial information or Social Security number could be stolen or compromised. And while 92 percent said they work to protect their financial information, less than half rarely or ever change their passwords or online financial accounts, the survey found.
It gets worse: 44 percent said they use the same password for multiple online accounts and almost 40 percent said they have checked their financial data online on public networks.
But while most Americans worry about having their financial lives exposed, they also have other, albeit lesser, concerns. This includes the 62 percent of Americans surveyed who said they worry about having their email hacked or the 59 percent who worry about having their homes robbed.
"There's a sharp contrast between what people say or think they are doing to protect their information and what they actually do, but that's understandable, we're human," Carolyn Balfany, senior vice president of U.S. Product Delivery -- EMV, MasterCard, said in a news release.
The survey also found that 48 percent of consumers believe they are most responsible for protecting their own financial information from being stolen or compromised.
The phone survey of 1,000 consumers found that millennials are the least likely to fear their private financial data being compromised -- over Generation Xers and Baby Boomers, who fear it the most.
crshropshire@tribpub.com
