Top 6 Ranked Vulnerabilities Regarding Mobile Payments

In a survey conducted by the ISACA, with the help of over 900 cybersecurity experts, it was determined that approximately 87 percent predict an increase in mobile payment data breaches over the next year or so.

Much to the dismay of device owners who had been hoping to hear only good news pertaining to the security of mobile payments. Those who were hoping to replace their wallets and cards with their smartphones may now need to think twice.

At the same time, 42 percent of the survey respondents claimed to have used mobile payments at some point in 2015, which begs the question; why take the risk if the vulnerabilities are copious?

The 2015 Mobile Payment Security study taken by the Global Cybersecurity Association revealed that people who choose to use mobile payment platforms would likely continue to do so despite the apparent security risk.

Good news for the likes of Apple Pay and Android Pay who are banking on mobile payments to take flight in the near future.

The survey also reveals that those who opt for mobile payments are more than willing to risk the possible breach in security for the convenience and additional benefits of the service.

23 percent believe mobile payments are a secure destination for personal information. However, 47 percent say mobile payments are not secure, while 30 percent remain uncertain of the question.

Also, 89 percent of respondents view cash as the most secure payment method available—but only 9 percent use cash as first preference.

“Mobile payments represent the latest frontier for the ongoing choice we all make to balance security and privacy risk and convenience,” commented John Pironti, risk advisor with ISACA and president of IP Architects. “ISACA members, who are some of the most cyber-aware professionals in the world, are using mobile payments while simultaneously identifying and contemplating their potential security risks. This shows that fear of identity theft or a data breach is not slowing down adoption—and it shouldn’t—as long as risk is properly managed and effective and appropriate security features are in place.”

The ranking of the major vulnerabilities pertaining to mobile payments according to the ISACA survey are-

1. Public wifi-26 percent
2. Lost or stolen devices-21 percent
3. Phishing (via text)-18 percent
4. Weak passwords-13 percent
5. User error-7 percent
6. No security vulnerabilities at all-0.3 percent

This obviously gives mobile payment users a lot to think about. Do they take the risk in order to utilize the convenience that is mobile payments? Or do they return to the protected shell of cash and card purely out of fear of security breaching? Only time will tell.