ESET investigates Australians' attitudes to financial technology

On average, Australians use three financial technology applications, but many are lax in their cyber hygiene practices.

This is according to new research from ESET on attitudes towards financial technology and cybersecurity. The findings specifically highlight Australian attitudes.

The focus of the research

Respondents from both consumer and business perspectives were asked a series of questions on the topics of financial technology, cybersecurity and their impacts on securing finances in a COVID-19 world, particularly in light of the lockdowns.

According to ESET, the project seeks to examine a range of themes in relation to experiences with financial technology for both consumers and businesses, including concerns around the security of finances, transactions and financial data, current FinTech application usage and attitudes, and business perspectives on the future of FinTech solutions in a post-COVID world.

What do consumers have to say?

The consumer segment of the survey revealed that 50% of Australian consumers use between one and five FinTech applications, but that while 85% of respondents have security software installed on at least one device, less than half have it on all their personal devices.

Meanwhile, 40% of people log in and use financial accounts while connected to public Wi-Fi hotspots or other open networks, and 46% do not use a VPN while 38% of people do not use a password manager.

The age group with the highest usage of password managers is those in the 35-44 range.

This is of particular concern because young Australians are among the biggest adopters of FinTech applications, ESET states.

Over a third (36%) of 18-24-year olds manage their bank account solely via app and 24-25 year olds have the highest rate of managing their bank accounts online at 95%.

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Source: ESET investigates Australians’ attitudes to financial technology