More than half of UK consumers (59 per cent) believe organisations should face harsher penalties for losing sensitive data, according to research.
A survey of 1,000 consumers by market researcher One Poll, on behalf of security firm LogRhythm, found almost a quarter (24 per cent) of people feel that punishments currently levied are often unequal.
Despite wanting a more heavy-handed response to data loss, security breaches tend to leave the public consciousness quickly.
While 56 per cent of consumers said they would not do business with an organisation that has suffered a breach, as many as 61 per cent did not know of any businesses that had fallen victim.
"We’ve seen a number of high-profile organisations suffer security breaches this year, but it’s still surprising that so few people are able to recall them, even after the media storms surrounding breached organisations like eBay," said Ross Brewer, vice president and managing director for international markets at LogRhythm.
"Breaches have become so commonplace that people simply expect businesses to fall victim at some point, which is resulting in them becoming numb to these types of stories. In fact, 45 per cent said they felt it was inevitable that their data would eventually be compromised."
