More than a quarter of Australian consumers fear their mobile apps will be breached and need mobile developers to invest more in delivering robust cyber protection in mobile apps, says market research sponsored by Appdome.
The finding was detailed in Appdome’s annual Australian Consumer Expectations of Mobile App Security study which surveyed Australian consumers about their mobile app usage, as well as their cyber security expectations and concerns in using mobile apps. The survey of Australian citizens was part of a global study of 25,000 consumers of all ages, backgrounds and genders, from multiple countries, including the US, the UK, Germany, Israel, Brazil, Singapore and Australia.
‘Concern about falling victim to fraud’ and ‘having an app hacked’ were nominated as the top fear which would stop them from using an app, by 56% and 52% of Australians, respectively.
Fastest growing fears, meanwhile, included the threat posed by on-device malware, unprotected mobile apps and fake apps, also known as Trojans. Developers that do not care about users’ security was cited as a concern by 27.6% of local respondents.
Fear of on-device malware was up 104.8% since 2021, while concern about “developers who release unprotected apps” skyrocketed by 225% over the same period.
“Australians have high expectations of cyber security, anti-fraud and anti-malware defense in mobile apps and want developers to hear them,” said Tom Tovar, CEO, Appdome. “Security is right up there with the top features demanded by Australian consumers and the risk to their transactions, data and use should be taken just as seriously as the best features in the app.”
Most Australians (83.9%) deemed protection against security threats, fraud and malware to be equally important, or more important, as new features within the apps they use. Just 16.1% of users agreed app developers should ‘focus on features, not security’ or that ‘features come first.’
Australians expect the most stringent security features in apps which share their personal data, the survey found. Mobile banking apps should have the highest level of security, according to 36.5% of respondents. 15.9% of Australians stated that eWallets/money transfers/payments apps should have the highest security. And social media apps and health and wellness apps were tied for 3rd place at 12.9% each.
More than half of consumers (51.9%) said all mobile apps that share personal data should have the highest level of protection.
“Australians are very sophisticated when it comes to the mobile app security, anti-fraud and malware defence they expect in the Android and iOS apps they use,” said Tovar.
“They aren’t shy about saying they expect advanced protection from malware, trojans, hacking and fraud inside the mobile app.”
Mobile brands whose apps are perceived to be less secure can expect to face bigger adoption costs and higher customer churn. Almost a quarter of Australians said they would likely stop using an app if they discovered their use was not being protected while a further 39.1% said they would ‘very likely stop using the app and tell my friends to stop too.’ If the mobile app suffered a successful hack or breach, the figures are even higher: 47.9% said they would ‘very likely stop using the app and tell my friends to stop too.’
“Even brands that haven’t had the misfortune to experience an attack may find their customers switching to other mobile brands, if consumers perceive the mobile app isn’t secure,” said Tovar. “That switch is more pronounced if an attack happens, of course.”
Conversely, when consumers feel that mobile brands have met their security expectations, they are incredibly happy to advocate for those brands, with 91.1% of Australian consumers stating they would promote brands on social media, recommend to their friends and family or write positive reviews on the app stores if they were protected.
“There’s a strong message here for brands and mobile developers alike,” said Tovar. “Give the Australian consumer the protection from hacking, fraud and malware they demand, tell them you’re doing so and show them in the app, and they’ll reward you.”
KEY FINDINGS:
- More than a quarter of Australian consumers believe app developers do not care sufficiently about cyber security.
- More than 80% of Australians say security is equally or more important than new features within apps.
- Concern about on-device malware shot up by 104.8% since 2021.
- 41.3% of Australian consumers demand the most advanced level of protection in mobile apps they use regularly.
- More than 70% of consumers are likely to cease using an app from a brand that has experienced a cyber incident.
About Appdome
Appdome’s mission is to protect every mobile app in the world and the people who use mobile apps in their lives and at work. Appdome provides the mobile industry’s only mobile application Cyber Defense Automation platform, powered by patented artificial-intelligence based coding engine, Threat-Events™ Threat-Aware UX/UI Control and ThreatScope™ Mobile XDR. Using Appdome, mobile brands eliminate complexity, save money, and deliver 300+ Certified Secure™ mobile app security, anti-malware, anti-fraud, mobile anti-bot, anti-cheat, MiTM attack prevention, code obfuscation and other protections in Android & iOS apps with ease, inside mobile DevOps and CI/CD pipeline. Leading financial, healthcare, government, and m-commerce brands use Appdome to protect Android & iOS apps, mobile customers, and mobile businesses globally. Appdome holds several patents including U.S. Patents 9,934,017 B2, 10,310,870 B2, 10,606,582 B2, 11,243,748 B2, and 11,294,663 B2. Additional patents pending.
