Consumer Internet Barometer

Press Release

More Consumers Trust That Their Online Transactions are Safe
New Consumer Internet Barometer™ Tracks Who's Doing What on the Internet

January 2, 2003 - U.S. consumers are more trusting when conducting online transactions than they were a year ago, according to the Consumer Internet Barometer, a new quarterly measure of who's doing what on the Internet. Most dramatic is the surge in trust with conducting financial transactions online. However, while specific activities show improvement in levels of trust and satisfaction, these activities alone were not enough to boost overall trust and satisfaction levels in Q4 2002.

The Consumer Internet Barometer is produced jointly by TNS NFO, Forrester Research and The Conference Board. It tracks consumers' evolving usage, trust and satisfaction with the Internet over time and identifies emerging trends.

Trust levels among Internet users for online transactions have improved from a year ago (fourth quarter 2001). Now, more than 33 percent express trust that their online financial transactions are safe, up from 27.5 percent a year ago. Consumers also expressed a greater degree of trust when purchasing products online. One-fourth trust that their personal information will be safe when purchasing products online, up from 21.9 percent a year ago.

Satisfaction levels for online financial transactions and purchases also improved over the past year.

"Lack of trust has long been a major barrier to engaging in online transactions," says Lynn Franco, Director of the Consumer Research Center of The Conference Board. "Consumers' concern about privacy of their personal information has a significant influence on their willingness to engage in business exchanges online. But this trust barrier is beginning to erode."

Overall Internet usage increased in the fourth quarter. Now, nearly 61 percent of consumers go online at least once a month. This is up from 58.7 percent a year ago. The Consumer Internet Barometer also finds the primary reason for using the Internet is personal communication (37.9 percent), followed by work-related activities (17.8 percent) and research (17.3 percent).

More Key Findings . . .

Only 33.6 percent of U.S. consumers have never been online, down from 34.7 percent.
Currently, 37.4 percent of users go online daily, up from 33.7 percent a year ago.
Of those who go online daily, 60.5 percent have made an online purchase in the last three months, down from 62.3 percent a year ago.
Among Internet users over the age of 55, 40.2 percent of males play games online versus 51.7 percent of females. This is in sharp contrast to gamers younger than 35, who are predominantly male.

About This Survey:

The Consumer Internet Barometer is based on a quarterly survey of 10,000 households. A unique sample is surveyed each quarter. Return rates average 70 percent, which assures highly representative data. Data is weighted as well to reflect the latest U.S. household demographic information. This survey was conducted during the fourth quarter of 2002.

For more detailed information, please e-mail tortorici@conference-board.org.

The next quarterly survey will be released on April 3, 2003 at 10:00 A.M. ET.

TNS NFO (www.nfow.com)

TNS NFO is one of the world ’s leading providers of research-based marketing information and counsel. "Marketing minds specializing in research "™, NFO provides in-depth knowledge and understanding of businesses, consumers, and brands through research. TNS NFO is one of The Interpublic Group of Companies (NYSE:IPG).

Forrester Research, Inc. (www.forrester.com)

Forrester Research identifies and analyzes emerging trends in technology and their impact on business. Forrester ’s WholeView ™ Research, Strategic Services, and Events help Global 3,500 companies understand how technology change affects their customers, strategy, and technology investment. Established in 1983, Forrester is headquartered in Cambridge, Mass.

The Conference Board (www.conference-board.org)

The Conference Board is the leading global business knowledge network for the world's largest corporations. The Conference Board is dedicated to helping companies improve performance and strengthening the role of business in society. More than 2,000 companies in 61 countries are members of The Conference Board, which produces the Consumer Confidence Index, the Help-Wanted Index and Business Cycle Indicators for nine countries worldwide.

Past Releases

October 16, 2002 - More Consumers Going Online, But Trust is a Major Concern

© 2004. All rights reserved. Consumer Internet Barometer is a joint trademark of TNS NFO and The Conference Board. TNS NFO and the TNS NFO logo are trademarks of TNS NFO. The Conference Board and The Conference Board logo are registered trademarks of The Conference Board, Inc.