The Social Context of the Security of Internet Banking

1
The Social Context of the Security of Internet
Banking

• By Supriya SinghRMIT University/SITCRCsupriya.si
  ngh_at_rmit.edu.au
• Paper presented at the Human Factors Series, RNSA
  Workshop 29 May 2006, University of Wollongong

2
Overview

• Users perspective on the security of Internet
  banking in Australia within the social context
  supplements the technological and industrial
  approaches to security
• Draws on user-centered research on banking in the
  Smart Internet Technology Cooperative Research
  Centre
• The perception of Internet banking security has
  little to do with technology. It increases with
  ease of use, convenience, personalisation and
  trust.
• Importance for Australias critical
  infrastructure.

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Imperfect security and networked transactions

• Banks want us to increasingly use the Internet
  for transactions. Australians also see Internet
  banking as an important channel for some banking
  transactions.
• Yet there is imperfect security for networked
  transactions. Various technological approaches
  have been put forward.
• There is a legislative grey area unlike credit
  cards. Customers believe the bank will do the
  right thing, as with credit cards.

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The Banking Study

• Part of a wider project on Security, Trust,
  Identity and Privacy.
• Reporting on the interim results of the
  qualitative user study.
• Open ended interviews with 64 people in Melbourne
  and Brisbane between April 2005 and March 2006.

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Privacy and security

• From the technologists and policy perspective,
  both privacy and security are seen to keep data
  away from those unauthorised to use it.
• Banks sees privacy in terms of compliance and
  restriction of access. Customers see privacy as
  controlling the sharing of information.
• Banks see security as a technological issue.
  Customers deflect attention away from the
  technology. The perception of Internet banking
  security increases with ease of use, convenience,
  trust and personal strategies to reduce risk.

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Convenience and the Use of Internet Banking

• Forty-one of our 64 participants currently use
  Internet banking. They used internet banking
  because it was convenient, rather than because
  they were sure Internet banking was secure and
  private.
• Four people in our sample were worried enough
  about the privacy and security of the Internet to
  not use Internet banking.
• The other 19 people did not use Internet banking
  because of access issues or because they did not
  see it as useful.

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Usefulness, convenience and security
Ellen, 35-44, an academic in part time work and
a household income of over 100,000 likes the
convenience and the immediacy of Internet
banking . at this stage I don't see it as a
security problem Laura, 25-34, has always
banked using the Internet. I dont know that I
think about it a lot, because I think I dont
understand it enough. So I dont think about it.
Its completely hiding your head in the
sand.
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Trusting the bank

• Anita, now a housewife, 55-64 with a household
  income between 55,000 and 74,000
• . I just hope that nothing will happen. I
  just put .. full trust on.. the banks that.. they
  are doing their best
• Amber, 28, with a household income below 50,000
  says her partner had money taken from his credit
  card. He rang the bank and they put the money
  back. They now trust the bank even more.

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Privacy, personalisation and responsiveness in
the bank

• Ten of the 64 glance at the privacy policy. Other
  feel the bank cannot be held to account for
  privacy, and that the bank is unresponsive to
  customer needs.
• Gillian 35-44, a PhD student, manages the joint
  account, though the bank sees her husband as the
  primary account holder. To change the contact
  details on the credit card, she had to call the
  bank, hand the phone to her husband who then
  authorised her to change the details.
• The bank has not kept pace with privacy
  preferences no longer being expressed in the
  individual and joint account.

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Customer control, life stage, and personalization

• Customer control and personalization is more
  important because there is a greater diversity in
  the form of partnerships
• The way the parents managed money is not always a
  suitable template
• People are working out their own mix of jointness
  and separateness in relationships
• Joint and separate accounts now come with their
  own preferences. A joint account may operate as a
  separate account. A separate account may be joint
  in the way it is managed
• Hence people define the boundaries of sharing in
  an individual manner.

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Banking and Lifestage The Traditional Dream
Couple families are 60.6 of family households
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The de facto relationship an in-between step
12 of couples are in de facto relationships.
72 of people who got married had been de
facto.
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Isnt always smooth
Single parents are 11.3 of family households
5.5 per cent of couples with dependant children
are step families 4.4 per cent are blended
families
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Or.
Lone person households are 24 of all households
(2001)
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Conclusion

• Convenience and ease of use are at the centre of
  customers positive experience of Internet
  banking.
• The usefulness of Internet banking together with
  trust that the bank will look after customers
  interests, overcomes concerns about security and
  privacy.
• The concerns with Internet banking rest more on
  customers perception of inadequate control over
  their personal information and personalisation of
  banking.