A new survey released by the American Bankers Association asserts that 94 percent of consumers think retailers should be taking steps to protect consumer data from hackers.

According to an ABA press release, the survey also found that 70 percent of consumers say that retailers should install EMV card readers as soon as possible.

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Unlike FIs, merchants are not subject to a national data security standard. However, the public believes they should be; 78 percent of consumers surveyed said that the government should hold retailers, banks and others involved in the payments system to the same security standards as banks.

Survey participants were most concerned about hackers breaking into retailers' computer systems (64 percent), compared with 16 percent who worry about physical card theft and 13 percent who fear "phishing" scams.

"These survey results reaffirm what we've believed all along," said Doug Johnson, ABA senior vice president of payments and cybersecurity policy. "Retailers need to join with banks and payment networks to combat fraud and focus on the future by updating their payment security systems and proactively working to address emerging threats head-on."



The survey also found that consumers recognize the importance of innovation in securing customer data, with 88 percent of respondents saying they believe it is important for credit card companies to prioritize the development of new, dynamic payment technologies — such as tokenization used in mobile wallets like Apple Pay — to stay ahead of ever-evolving criminal threats.

The survey of 1,006 U.S. adults was conducted for ABA by Ipsos Public Affairs, an independent market research firm, Sept. 28–30.