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

The Smart Money: Professional Installation Gains Ground

Parks Associates projects that the U.S. smart home device market will generate $15 billion in annual sales revenue by 2029. While DIY remains the entry point for many households, Parks Associates’...

Multifamily resident access to gigabit or faster download speeds is rising

A recent Parks Associates and Cox Communities study found that more multifamily residents with home internet can get access to gigabit download speeds. In a new white paper, A Guide to Connecti...

Research: 45% of US internet homes watch FAST services

Parks Associates reports that 89 per cent of US internet households subscribe to at least one streaming service and 45 per cent watch free ad-based services. Additionally, the firm reports that...

More Cameras, Fewer Fears as Survey Reveals the New Face of Home Security

According to Parks Associates research covered by SecurityInfoWatch, pro monitoring is also gaining traction as households seek hybrid solutions that balance automation with human verification, br...