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RESEARCH, ANALYSIS & TRENDS

Declining trust in the Internet hinders

further development of the digital economy

A new global survey reveals that Internet users are said.
increasingly concerned about their online privacy, Lack of trust is most likely to keep people off e-
and that 49% of users polled say lack of trust is commerce platforms in the Middle East, Africa and Lat-
their main reason for not shopping online. in America, suggesting that the potential gains of e-
commerce are not spread evenly around the globe.
The survey, conducted by Ipsos and the Centre for In-
ternational Governance Innovation (CIGI), in collabora- “Nearly 50 percent of Internet users surveyed do not
tion with the United Nations Conference on Trade and trust the Internet and this lack of trust is affecting the
Development (UNCTAD) and the Internet Society, way they use it. The findings of this year’s CIGI-Ipsos
comes as data breaches and the reported hacking of survey underscore the importance of taking action now
elections in several European countries continues to to build stronger online trust by addressing users’ con-
capture international headlines. The survey results sug- cerns and using technologies such as encryption to
gest that the resulting impact on trust is hindering fur- secure communications,” said Sally Wentworth, Vice
ther development of the digital economy. President of Global Policy for the Internet Society.

Released at the UNCTAD E-Commerce Week in Gene- The survey also revealed great differences in e-
va, the 2017 CIGI-Ipsos Global Survey on Internet Se- commerce behavior when it came to how users are
curity & Trust shows that among those worried about purchasing goods online. For example, in China, India
their privacy, the top sources of concern were cyber- and Indonesia, more than 86% of respondents expect
criminals (82%), Internet companies (74%) and govern- to make mobile payments on their smartphone in the
ments (65%). next year, compared with less than 30% in France,
Germany and Japan.
“The lifeblood of the Internet is trust, and when that is
damaged, the consequences for the digital economy are Even in the digital world, location still matters. Fifty-five
nearly irreparable,” said Director of CIGI’s Global Secu- percent of global respondents indicated that they prefer
rity & Politics program Fen Osler Hampson. “The results purchasing online goods and services made in their
of this global survey offer a glimpse into why policymak- own country.
ers should be concerned, and why there is a strong link
between user trust and the health of e-commerce,” he
16 April 2017 - Marketing Automation & Attribution