Tag Archives: Data Security

News

1 in 5 people feel Open Banking is secure

Open Banking platforms still have a way to go to convince the public of their superior safety despite 1 in 5 feeling this form of online transaction is secure, according to I-Finity’s 2024 Open Banking survey.

Open Banking is not only safe and secure, but also faster and more efficient than regular online banking methods.

But many people are still concerned over the security of Open Banking suggesting that the public need more education on the topic.

Open Banking survey: the findings

I-Finity – a highly-experienced digital solutions company – surveyed 200 people who had used or currently use banking apps to find the public’s views on Open Banking security.

The results showed:

  • Only 1 in 10 felt Open Banking was not secure, with 23% feeling it was. 67% were unsure.
  • Just 46% of people were aware of Open Banking.
  • 36% of people would be unhappy to give personal data to an Open Banking app or platform.
  • 47% were unsure of whether they would give personal data, with just 18% certain they would be happy doing so.
  • Bank details being stolen was the biggest concern around Open Banking. with 20% choosing this option.
  • 18% felt the site might be a scam or phishing site.

While the survey highlights there is some reluctance by the public to adopt Open Banking, it also suggests education around the topic would be beneficial.

Like most new technologies – especially ones that involve personal data and money – there has been some scepticism around Open Banking’s security. But most of this is unfounded.

Russ Huntington, CTO of I-Finity, said: “The reality is that open banking is very secure. In fact, it’s more secure than traditional banking. But as with many financial products, everyday users can be a little wary.

“But with Open Banking you need to use secure data-sharing practices, such as using APIs and encryption, to ensure that customer data is protected.

“The connection between apps and Open Banking is also encrypted, which helps to keep data safe. Consumers need more education on how safe this form of banking integration is.”

Open Banking is highly regulated

The Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) makes sure that all open banking apps and APIs are regulated.

They create the standards that all third-party providers have to adhere to if they want open banking as part of their solution/environment.

Russ added: “Accessing Open Banking APIs is only possible for apps that have been through an independent audit to prove the systems and security controls meet the standards of the FCA.”

News, Tech Thought Leadership

Three key ways CMS platforms will help businesses in 2023

Written by Kim Sneum Madsen, CEO of Umbraco

“Organisations faced numerous challenges in the past year, including rising costs, supply chain issues and increased competition for talent. In addition, the effects of climate change are becoming more evident, making it imperative for companies to find new ways to reduce their environmental impact.

In spite of these headwinds, we know that necessity is the mother of invention and, as an open-source company working with thousands of creative people, we see many reasons to be hopeful as we head into our nineteenth year in business.

The pandemic accelerated digital transformation across all sectors, enabling a seismic shift in working patterns and putting customer experience at the top of the tech agenda.

Considering these combined factors, we believe that three trends will dominate our industry in 2023:

● CMS solutions will evolve substantially to enable broader digital experiences
● Data protection will be a key factor when building digital experiences
● Companies will adopt holistic sustainability

Let’s dig into why:

CMS solutions will evolve substantially in 2023

As we enter a new period of austerity, organisations will have a firm focus on technology ROI. Anything that doesn’t meet business needs will be off the menu. Paying license fees for unused software features will become a painpoint. When it comes to CMS selection, we predict that many organisations will rethink their monolithic approach and opt instead for composable architectures that allow them to combine best-of-breed technology components such as CRM, analytics, AI, automation, commerce and CX, which directly benefit the bottom line.

The adoption of composable architectures will increase the appetite for open-source solutions to reduce licensing costs, ease integration and increase agility.

While CMS were the engines that powered the world’s websites. Now, content management is just one element of the more complex digital experiences we see our digital agency partners building today. However, CMS will remain a crucial component in composable DXPs built from API-connected solutions that are selected and seamlessly integrated to meet immediate business requirements.

We’ve observed that the B2B experience of buying software has become more akin to the B2C experience. This pattern will continue in 2023 as it allows organisations to select what they need and incorporate fresh DXP elements such as automation, PIM, DAM, AI and personalisation software, to support composable commerce strategies and put customer experience at the forefront.

Anders Holt, CEO of our longest-standing partner, Novicell, predicts, “Organisations must be led by what customers demand, not what their technology will allow. More companies are recognising that consolidating their digital presence on a single large platform can limit business opportunities. Instead of trying to serve customers from a single solution that’s expensive and slow to update, in 2023 we’ll see more organisations using a combination of specialised component solutions that directly meet current business needs and which can be more quickly and economically replaced as customer requirements change.”

Data protection will be at the heart of digital experiences

The technology market has been governed by national and data protection regulations for decades. The right to privacy of correspondence was enshrined in the European Convention of Human Rights in 1950, the first UK Data Protection Act was passed in 1984 and the EU GDPR updated those protections for the internet age and came into force in 2018. We have seen major companies being called to account and fined millions of Euros for their handling of customers’ data. Apart from the threat of fines for breaking data protection laws, the reputational damage and loss of business resulting from breaching customers’ trust are the greatest deterrents. This will drive a stronger focus on the ethical use of data by technology companies.

As CMS platforms evolve, data protection will be a key factor in the way that data is processed, transferred and protected within API-connected architectures. Many countries outside of the European Economic Area have adopted similar regulations to EU GDPR and provide equivalent protection for citizens’ personal data. As more organisations adopt cloud-based services to benefit from reduced operating costs, we anticipate that there will be a customer-led demand for greater data sovereignty to provide reassurance that their personal and financial information is stored within their own borders and protected by their local jurisdiction.

Mark Lusted, CEO of MagiClick, which has developed a number of digital platforms for financial institutions also believes that 2023 will see organisations incorporating DXP elements that support data compliance: “The EU Digital Market Act looks to be a game-changing piece of legislation which will force the major players in technology to break open their “walled gardens” in 2023. This has major implications for all companies designing and building digital experiences.

The impact will also likely be felt well beyond the borders of the EU because, as we’ve seen with the previous GDPR legislation, many global businesses seek to implement key areas of compliance globally. Other jurisdictions are also likely to follow suit with similar legislation.

The wider direction of travel for the technology market is clear and those designing and building digital products need to embed the ethical use of consumer data in their product design approach and embed transparent, clear standards on how they will use this data. I also believe these changes will create opportunities as the data held within “gatekeeper” platforms from Big Tech giants are opened up and I have no doubt that innovative use cases for this will soon follow.

CMS vendors will need to adapt the privacy and interoperability features of their platforms and I believe these changes further strengthen the case to move in the direction of composable digital experience platforms, rather than monolithic solutions, as composable architecture affords much more flexibility to adapt and choose components from different ancillary products which best fit the new legislative requirements.”

Sustainability evolves to a more holistic vision in companies

We predict that environmental, social and governance factors will drive DXP decisions in 2023. Sustainability will become more holistic and be incorporated into the earliest stages of digital design and technology selection.

Any company that wants to put its customers first needs to start by listening to them. Customers are looking more closely at the way that organisations treat the environment and their employees. Companies that are seen to put profit before people are losing market share.

The technology industry is coming under greater scrutiny for the resources that it consumes and the volume of its byproducts, whether that be electronic waste, heat from servers, or CO2 emissions from datacentres. This will extend to the way that digital experiences are designed. Every click consumes energy. As customers become aware of ways to reduce the environmental impact of online activities, organisations will be driven to reduce energy consumption, adopt greener solutions and put back into society and the planet.

We have already seen the technology industry making strides to improve diversity and inclusion. This will continue in 2023 as organisations recognise the social and financial benefits of viewing the world from multiple perspectives and accessing fresh problem-solving capabilities. As an open-source company we have long understood the value of crowd-sourcing creativity. In challenging times, this collective effort will help organisations to survive and thrive.

On the governance front, competition for talent is pushing organisations to select technology platforms that attract the best employees and help them to deliver seamless digital experiences to their customers.

Good governance promotes profitability without being heavily detrimental to the environment and employees. In 2023 there will be greater pressure to create better profitability paths in the tech industry so that companies can be financially sustainable as well as ethical.

Here too, we see composable architecture playing its part in a sustainable culture. By enabling technologies to be swapped in and out of the stack to meet business opportunities, organisations can extend the life of digital platforms without major investment in re-platforming.
Andy Eva-Dale, Technical Director at digital agency and Umbraco gold partner, Tangent, offers some excellent advice: “The IT industry is responsible for 3-4% of global CO2 emissions. Every http request uses energy. The good news is that designers of digital experiences can help to reduce this impact. In 2023 we’ll see more organisations adopting sustainable digital design practices such as asset bundling and optimising images to reduce their size, improve load speeds and lower energy consumption.

Sustainability also extends to considering how we might reuse common code and reference architectures, rather than duplicating developers’ efforts and squandering scarce resources. Adopting a composable approach to digital experience development allows API-connected technologies to be swapped in and out, rather than ripping and replacing an entire platform. In a challenging economic climate, the ability to extend the life of digital experience platforms by adding in lighter weight technologies that precisely meet business needs and avoid the organisation paying expensive license fees for unnecessary features, is more likely to win over the C-suite too.”

How Umbraco helps partners to profit

At Umbraco, we do everything we can to keep up-to-date with current business trends and put them into practice ourselves, so that we are the best choice for organisations seeking a future-proof, user-friendly CMS that supports the move to composable architectures and has data protection at its heart.

As a European company, we already abide by the toughest data protection regulation in the world. Earlier in 2022, we launched regional cloud hosting in the U.S., providing our American customers with the option to store data locally, within their own country’s jurisdiction.

Our digital agency partners are already building composable digital experience ecosystems with Umbraco. The recent release of Umbraco 11 includes a new Marketplace, which makes it easier to discover technologies that seamlessly integrate with our CMS. Our mission is to make complex tasks simpler, so we’re actively expanding the number of Technology Partners contributing integration packages to the Marketplace, to make it easier to find the right tools to build powerful digital experience platforms that keep customers loyal and help businesses thrive. ”

 

News

85 percent of UK consumers do not trust businesses with the privacy and security of their online data, but 50% prepared to overlook these concerns in favour of a better user experience

A recent study of 1,012 UK consumers, conducted independently by API management provider Axway, has revealed that the majority of Britons have serious concerns over how their data is stored and secured, however 50% are prepared to overlook those concerns in favour of a better user experience.

The study showed 85 percent of respondents are concerned about the privacy and security of their online data, with almost 75 percent agreeing that companies do not make it sufficiently transparent as to how they handle their data. Mistrust could potentially lead to detrimental effects for any organisation with an online presence: for 53 percent, a data security incident would be a reason to end the customer relationship for good. When asked more specifically, 49.4 percent replied that they would at the very least stop dealing with a company until the problem was solved or they could change their login details (30.8 percent). However, with 50% prepared to overlook those concerns in favour of a better user experience, organisations have an opportunity to build seamless digital experiences and form a foundation of trust.

The study also found that almost 70 percent of Britons would choose to work with businesses that offered a more secure approach to protect personal data. However, for almost 10%, engaging with a business still depends on how much trust they have in the company, irrespective of its approach to data protection. At the same time, just 22 percent trust “Big Tech” more with their data compared to smaller, independent or local companies, while 61.9 percent trust the large and smaller companies about the same.

VP and Chief Catalyst at Axway, Brian Pagano says: “Whether in energy, health, finance, or retail, companies are trying to stand out and provide brilliant digital experiences while also complying to industry data privacy and security requirements, which is no simple proposition. Eliminating friction in customer experiences is the biggest competitive advantage, and these survey results point to security breaches and privacy concerns as a snag in the fabric of the seamless experience people have come to expect”.

“Experience tells us consumers will go wherever the least amount of friction is, regardless of the custody chain of your data. If people feel unsure about how their data is being handled, companies have an opportunity to build trust so that their average consumer doesn’t need to concern themselves with these details. Enterprises can rely on a suite of tools, like Axway’s Amplify API Management Platform, which will give them scalability, privacy and security audit trails, and regulatory and compliance frameworks so they can focus on delivering the best and most secure experience.”