Millennials Least Likely to Trust Smart Devices, Accenture Finds

Millennials are a key market for tech companies, so why do smart device manufacturers seem to have no clue as to millennials’ behavior and security concerns? Millennials, a tech-savvy group, are perfectly aware of the opportunities IoT technology and smart devices offer, but they fear data privacy is at serious risk because of software vulnerabilities left unpatched in devices rushed to market.

Companies are yet to seriously address security issues in smart devices to ultimately encourage users to widely embrace it for their homes.

“Companies have taken a product-focused instead of a human-centric approach and they don’t fully understand who their customer is and what they want,” according to a report by The Dock—Accenture’s global R&D and Innovation Centre following a survey of 6,050 millennials from 13 locations.

Half of respondents aged 18 to 34 think they are “too dependent on technology,” while 43 percent worry connected devices collect too much personal information. Some 65% of millennials are concerned the data collected by smart devices is not handled properly and fear they could fall victim to security incidents or data breaches, or that their personal information could be sold to third parties.

The smart home of the future is apparently a work in progress, as the most important demographic remains reticent to using smart home technology or trusting connected devices with their personal data. However, the 65-and-over demographic is more open to new technology without much consideration for security. In fact, they widely believe their data is collected and kept securely.

“There is no single technological solution to the future home,” reads the paper. “But to design smart-home products that will have longevity, companies need to better understand what’s happening in the black box of their customers’ behavior in the home. This means understanding customer attitudes throughout their various life stages, what the idea of home means to them, and developing a better appreciation of their behavior behind the front door.”