Providing market intelligence for more than 35 years

In The News

Network Security: Hacking Fears Could Scare Consumers Away from Smart-Home Devices

The rising occurrence of high-profile security hacks and privacy breaches, as well as being personally victimized, are contributing to ever-increasing consumer anxiety about smart home devices and platforms, according to new research.

Parks Associates’ latest quarterly survey of 10,000 U.S. broadband households found that almost half of consumers rank data security and privacy issues as their greatest concerns about connecting devices to the Internet, compared to other problems they may encounter, such as with tech support. Forty percent of the respondents say they have experienced a privacy or security problem with a connected device in the past year, most commonly viruses and malware.

“Our most recent data reveals that almost half of U.S. broadband households are ‘very concerned’ [rating 6-7 on a 7-point scale] about hackers getting control of connected devices and hackers getting access to data from the device,” says Parks Associates Research Analyst Brad Russell. “In tracing trending changes on these consumer attitudes from 2014 to 2016, we find that while the total share of consumers who are ‘concerned’ [rating 5-7] has not appreciably changed, the share of those that are ‘very concerned’ has grown by 6% to 7%. Similarly, the share of consumers who are ‘not concerned [rating 1-3] has shrunk by about half.”

From the article "Network Security: Hacking Fears Could Scare Consumers Away from Smart-Home Devices" by Rodney Bosch.

Previously In The News

Lacking Data and Tools: The 8 Barriers to OTT Insights

Parks Associates’ research illustrates the gap between the content performance data that media executives want and what they can access. From the article, "Lacking Data and Tools: The 8 Barrier...

The Crucial Role of Technology Partnerships: Helping Schools Flourish

The educational landscape has undergone a profound transformation. Classrooms, once adorned with traditional teaching tools, have evolved into digital hubs where connectivity is no longer a luxury but...

Your Smart Video Doorbell May Not Be Secure, Consumer Reports Testing Shows

Around 1 in 5 people age 50 and older own a doorbell camera, according to survey data from the Addison, Texas-based Parks Associates market research firm, figures that are roughly in line with all U.S...

Walmart buys TV portal to nowhere

As streaming services bundle together, monopolizing the delivery of shows – whether it’s the TV unit or the wifi - becomes more important, too. Vizio, with over 10% of television sales market share, i...