74% report that their company holds a positive
reputation for privacy and data protection compared to
competitors
MENLO
PARK, Calif. and LONDON, Nov. 4, 2024
/PRNewswire/ -- While cyber threats have grown more frequent
and more sophisticated each year, only 8% of global executives say
they are concerned or extremely concerned about their company's
ability to protect customer and client data over the next five
years, according to a recent survey by global consulting firm
Protiviti in collaboration with the University
of Oxford. The survey, titled "Executive Outlook on the
Future of Privacy, 2030" is part of the newest installment of
VISION by Protiviti, the thought leadership series that
focuses on the future of business.
The survey found that business executives retain high confidence
about their organizations' data privacy readiness and ability to
safeguard data. Surprisingly, 76% of business leaders said they
have very mild to no concern about their company's ability to
protect customer data over the next five years.
"Consumers today are increasingly concerned about the protection
of their personal data online. As the data privacy landscape
continues to evolve and new technologies emerge at an increasingly
fast pace, it's critical for leaders to evaluate their privacy
programs from all angles," said Sameer
Ansari, global leader, security and privacy, Protiviti. "The
rapid advancement of GenAI across enterprises can often outpace
existing privacy regulations creating protection gaps for
customers."
Data Security Requires Collaboration Between Employer and
Employees
A significant majority of executives (77%) feel confident or
very confident about their employees' ability to understand the
importance of keeping customer data secure. This figure reaches an
overwhelming majority of 91% among North American business
executives despite a lack of comprehensive set of U.S. regulations
to protect consumer data vs. disclosing a breach after it
happens.
The survey reveals strong confidence in the organization's
ability to maintain customer trust regarding data security, with
84% of executives believing their organization is effective or
extremely effective in this area. This assurance likely fuels the
74% who report that their company holds a positive reputation for
privacy and data protection compared to their nearest competitors.
These findings underscore the critical relationship between
effective data protection and an organization's reputation. Trust
among customers and employees is fragile as a single data breach
has the potential to significantly erode it.
Contradicting Personal Privacy Concerns
The survey reveals an astonishing discrepancy between
executives' confidence in their company's data protection
capabilities and their concerns about their personal data privacy.
While only 8% of executives expressed concern about their company's
ability to protect client data, a significant 78% of respondents
were worried about their own personal data privacy over the next
five years.
Top Challenges to Data Privacy Compliance
When surveyed about their companies' biggest challenges in
complying with privacy regulations, respondents identified the
following top three issues:
- Maintaining an effective control environment amid emerging
threats
- Identifying all internal systems that contain personal
data
- Dealing with different and sometimes conflicting data privacy
regimes
Regionally, the challenges varied: in North America, the top challenge was "dealing
with different and sometimes conflicting data privacy regimes." In
Asia-Pacific, it was "maintaining an effective control environment
among emerging threats." Interestingly, Europe's top cited challenge "training staff
in light of the quickly evolving landscape" was not even among the
top 3 challenges globally overall.
Looking Ahead: AI's Role in Privacy Protection Outpaces Other
Emerging Technologies
As privacy and cybersecurity remain at the forefront of business
concerns, three-quarters of global executives expect AI to impact
significantly their data privacy strategies moving forward. The
belief that AI will be a force for good in privacy protection was
consistent across geographies, industries and age groups. In
contrast, a mere 5% of leaders view AI as harmful to their privacy
initiatives.
In terms of addressing privacy concerns, AI outpaced other
emerging technologies like augmented and virtual reality (60%),
cloud computing (65%), blockchain (65%), and quantum computing
(47%).
"There's no doubt AI and other emerging technologies will have a
significant impact on data protection and privacy. While executives
express a positive outlook on AI to protect consumer data, it will
be important for business leaders to also clearly understand the
risks of threat actors using AI to access customer data in new
malicious ways," said Cory
Gunderson, chief operating officer and executive vice
president, global solutions, Protiviti.
The study surveyed 250 board members, C-suite executives and
other business leaders in 14 countries in North America, Europe and Asia-Pacific representing more than 25
industries. Survey data was collected in August and September 2024.
Learn More About the Future of Privacy, 2030 and
Beyond
The survey report, "Executive Outlook on the Future of
Privacy, 2030" is available for complimentary download at
VISION by Protiviti. This edition of VISION features
additional content and insights from privacy luminaries and leaders
from the world's top companies, including:
- Former
Apple, Google CPOs on the future of data privacy
- Microsoft's Sarah Armstrong-Smith on protecting data and
minimizing threat
- Future of Privacy Forum CEO
Jules Polonetsky on "exciting but
risky" road ahead
- The Economist's Dexter
Thillien: Privacy in peril amid digital data explosion
- UPenn Wharton School Vice
Dean, Mauro F. Guillén: How AI radically changes the data privacy
landscape
- Protiviti's Tom Moore on the evolution of the CPO and its
uncertain future
About The University of
Oxford
Established in 2018, the Global Centre on Healthcare and
Urbanisation (GCHU) at Kellogg College, University of Oxford, brings together leading and
influential thinkers in an interdisciplinary approach embracing
evidence-based healthcare, sustainable urban development, and
education, and provides a collaborative forum for organisations
active in these disciplines. The GCHU asks vital questions on the
role of cities in healthcare and wellbeing to better understand the
impact and consequences of urbanisation, trains and informs the
next leaders in healthcare and urbanisation to nurture the highest
standards, and undertakes research and scholarship at the
intersection of healthcare and urbanisation to inform
recommendations for future practice.
About Protiviti
Protiviti (www.protiviti.com) is a global consulting firm that
delivers deep expertise, objective insights, a tailored approach
and unparalleled collaboration to help leaders confidently face the
future. Protiviti and its independent and locally owned member
firms provide clients with consulting and managed solutions in
finance, technology, operations, data, digital, legal, HR, risk and
internal audit through a network of more than 90 offices in over 25
countries.
Named to the Fortune 100 Best Companies to Work
For® list for the 10th consecutive year,
Protiviti has served more than 80 percent
of Fortune 100 and nearly 80 percent of Fortune
500 companies. The firm also works with government agencies and
smaller, growing companies, including those looking to go public.
Protiviti is a wholly owned subsidiary of Robert
Half (NYSE: RHI).
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SOURCE Protiviti
