A new study examining consumer perspectives around digital identity has revealed that people now prioritise security over convenience when logging in to devices and applications – particularly financial apps.

The IBM Security survey of almost 4,000 adults from across the US, Asia Pacific and Europe found that security ranked as the highest priority for logging in to the majority of applications, particularly money-related apps. Security also ranked as the top priority for online marketplaces, workplace apps and email.

Two thirds of respondents said they are comfortable using biometric authentication today, while 87 per cent said they will be comfortable with these technologies in the future. While three quarters of Millennials are currently happy to use biometrics, less than half are using complex passwords, and 41 per cent reuse passwords.

Some 44 per cent of respondents ranked fingerprint biometrics as one of the most secure methods of authentication. Passwords and PINs were seen as less secure (27 per cent and 12 per cent respectively).

Young adults also showed the strongest preference for convenience, with almost half (47 per cent) of adults under 24 preferring a faster sign-in experience to a more secure form of authentication. This may be one reason that young people are more likely to adopt biometric authentication, according to the report, with 75 per cent of Millennials comfortable using biometrics today compared to 58 per cent of those over the age of 55.

Limor Kessem, executive security advisor at IBM Security, said: “In the wake of countless data breaches of highly sensitive personal data, there’s no longer any doubt that the very information we’ve used to prove our identities online in the past is now a shared secret in the hands of hackers.

“As consumers are acknowledging the inadequacy of passwords and placing increased priority on security, the time is ripe to adopt more advanced methods that prove identity on multiple levels and can be adapted based on behaviour and risk.”

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