Trust grows in online transactions, survey

NEW YORK: According to a joint quarterly survey carried out by Forrester Research and NFO WorldGroup for the Conference Board, more than 33 percent of Web users said they think their online transactions are safe, up from 27.5 percent a year ago.

About 25 percent of Web surfers trust that their personal information will be safe, compared with nearly 22 percent a year ago, the Conference Board said in a statement. The findings were based on the group's Consumer Internet Barometer.

"Lack of trust has long been a major barrier to engaging in online transactions," said Lynn Franco, director of the Conference Board's Consumer Research Center, 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," Franco added.

The survey came as online retailers saw sales rise this holiday season much stronger than traditional store sales, which appeared to have the smallest gains in years.

The Conference Board also said in a statement that only 33.6 percent of U.S. consumers have never been online, down from 34.7 percent a year ago.

The Conference Board, whose members include many of the top U.S. corporations, is a non-profit organization that studies management and the marketplace and makes forecasts, assesses trends and offers analysis.

© Reuters