Eight in 10 Consumers Are Concerned They Will Be a Victim of Fraud

CHICAGO, IL--(Marketwired - September 20, 2016) - A new survey from TransUnion (NYSE: TRU) found that 83% of consumers are concerned they will become an identity theft victim within the next one to two years by having their personal data stolen from a business or government agency. Findings from the survey were released today at the Global Identity Summit in Tampa, Fla.

TransUnion's survey of 1,033 adults also found that more than half of consumers (53%) say that they or a member of their household has already been a victim of identity theft, online fraud or had personal data stolen from a business or government agency.

"Identity theft and online fraud are rising at an alarming rate, putting a consumer's personal information at a greater risk to be compromised. This also puts businesses and government agencies at risk of being hacked by identities that have been stolen and sold on the dark web," said Jonathan McDonald, executive vice president of TransUnion's government information solutions business unit. "The TransUnion survey findings confirm the need for businesses and government agencies to do all they can to safeguard personal data entrusted to them and to provide greater certainty."

According to the survey, only 36% of consumers agree that government organizations and agencies truly understand and appreciate the pain and problems that a data breach of personal information can cause. More than half (52%) expressed concerns about what methods organizations and agencies are employing to prevent fraudsters from using their stolen identity to access systems to perpetrate a crime in their name.

Other key survey findings include:

• More than half (55%) of consumers would like government organizations to mandate increased authentication security beyond user passwords to prevent identity theft.
• Consumers ranked "two factor authentication using passwords" as the most important emerging technology government organizations should use to prevent identity theft, followed by "identity verification" and "biometrics and fingerprinting" solutions.

"Cyber criminals are getting smarter and more technically sophisticated making cybercrimes increasingly difficult to detect," said Jeffrey Huth, vice president of product strategy for TransUnion's government information solutions division. "When criminals impersonate a real person using a stolen identity to access an online system, traditional cyber-security measures will be ineffective."

TransUnion's Government Information Solutions division provides fraud, benefit eligibility verification, continuous evaluation services, identity authentication, data breach response, investigation services, and other key solutions to federal, state and local government agencies in the U.S. TransUnion's solutions help both private and government sector organizations manage risk and reduce costs.

For more information about TransUnion's Government Information Solutions division, please visit https://www.transunion.com/government. For additional insight, see our recent blog post: As Cyber Fraud Escalates, Defending Your Network Means More than Firewalls and Malware.

About TransUnion (NYSE: TRU)
Information is a powerful thing. At TransUnion, we realize that. We are dedicated to finding innovative ways information can be used to help individuals make better and smarter decisions. We help uncover unique stories, trends and insights behind each data point, using historical information as well as alternative data sources. This allows a variety of markets and businesses to better manage risk and consumers to better manage their credit, personal information and identity. Today, TransUnion has a global presence in more than 30 countries and a leading presence in several international markets across North America, Africa, Latin America and Asia. Through the power of information, TransUnion is working to build stronger economies and families and safer communities worldwide.

We call this Information for Good. http://www.transunion.com/business