Aussies, Kiwis keep email and PINs secure, but don't properly dispose bank statements: global study

Survey found 23 per cent of Australians and 32 per cent of Kiwis threw away bank statements without shredding them

Aussies and Kiwis are good at ignoring phishing emails and not writing down their personal identification numbers (PINs), but lax when it comes to throwing away paper bank statements, according to the findings of a global study.

The study was conducted by ACI Worldwide and analyst firm Aite Group in March 2014. Aite Group looked at sample size of 300 people in each of the 20 countries, which include Brazil, Canada, Mexico, the United States, France, Germany, Italy, the Netherlands, Poland, Russia, South Africa, Sweden, the United Arab Emirates, the United Kingdom, Australia, China, India, Indonesia, New Zealand and Singapore.

The study asked people about risky behaviour such as leaving their smartphone unlocked when not in use and writing down their PIN number.

Only 3 per cent out of the 300 Australians and 4 per cent of the 300 Kiwis who participated in the study responded to emails or calls asking for bank details.

In contrast, India had the highest percentage rate with 31 per cent of consumers admitting that they responded to an email or phone call. Sixteen per cent of Chinese consumers did click on an email or respond to scammers asking for bank account details.

The study also asked consumers if they wrote down their credit/debit card PIN and carried it with them. Six per cent of Australians and 4 per cent of Kiwis admitted to doing this.

In contrast, 25 per cent of Indians carried their PIN number with them, while in China 13 per cent of consumers admitted to writing down their PIN. Indonesia recorded similar rates of 15 per cent.

When it came to throwing away bank statements, Aussies and Kiwis weren’t so vigilant.

Twenty-three per cent of Australians admitted that they had thrown out bank account statements or documents without shredding the paper first. In addition, 32 per cent of Kiwis had done the same thing.

Thirty-six per cent of Chinese consumers threw out paper that contained account details, while 37 per cent of Indonesians and 28 per cent of Indians also admitted to doing this.

Consumers were also asked if they left their smartphone unlocked when they weren’t using it.

Twenty-one per cent of the Australian respondents and 20 per cent of NZ consumers left their smartphone unlocked when not using it.

This compared with 28 per cent of respondents in China, 29 per cent of those surveyed in India and 28 per cent of Indonesian consumers.

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Fraud rates

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Turning to credit and debit card fraud, the study found that 27 per cent out of 300 Australian consumers were the victim of credit card in the past five years.

This was a slight drop of 3 per cent since ACI Worldwide last asked this question in 2012.

The study also found that 10 per cent of Australians surveyed were subjected to debit card fraud in the past five years, up 1 per cent from the 2012 study.

Out of the 300 respondents in China, 42 per cent experienced card fraud. This was a 6 per cent rise since 2012 when 36 per cent of Chinese respondents were victims.

Meanwhile, in Singapore, 28 per cent out of the 300 people who participated in the study were the victims of card fraud. This was a slight rise of 2 per cent on the 2012 study.