How Do You Prioritize Security?

It’s no secret by now that cybersecurity often falls on a lower rung of priorities for companies.  Developers of an application, for example, are most interested in facilitating the best, most convenient experience for customers as possible.  Security can, in comparison, fall by the wayside.  But in failing to sufficiently keep their data safe, can an app really provide the best customer experience?

Indeed, a speedy release for a product or feature is often paramount.  Ensuring a secure product comes second.  As Forbes accurately reports, businesses may view security testing as a burden, as an unnecessary time delay that compromises their bottom line.  And yet, “ultimately this demonstrates short term thinking and risks longer term damage.”  Which is to say, it’s not just immediate financial costs at stake; it’s also longer term reputation damage…which leads to more financial costs.

Speaking of long versus short term, when a breach does occur, studies are now finding interesting differences between the reactions on both sides of the Atlantic pond.  Research from PCI Pal, a contact center payment security company, shows 62% of Americans on one hand withdrawing their business for some months with a breached company.  On the other, only 44% of UK consumers say the same.  The latter, however, are less likely to forgive: 41% never return to a brand, versus 21% of Americans.

Taken into account with the other statistics from the study, we can see the different attitudes towards one’s personal information.  PCI Pal CEO James Barham even hints at an underlying cause, suggesting that “the focus on GDPR has had a tangible impact on how British consumers view the value of their data, and business’ role in protecting it.”  With no equivalent stateside, perhaps this demonstrates the potential educational power of national data breach regulations.  GDPR has served as a wakeup call to many in the UK, both consumers and organizations, on the value of consumer trust.  That value can impact a company’s bottom line in the long run as much as anything, and maintaining it could stand to climb a few rungs on the ladder.