Security concerns for mobile payments decline in 2014 - Mastercard study

Security became less of a consumer concern for mobile payments in 2014 with the priority being placed on an improved digital shopping experience, according to a study carried out by Prime Research for Mastercard that tracked 19.1mn comments on various social media platforms.

In general, 94% of the conversations tracked globally regarding mobile payments were favorable compared with 77% in 2013 and 70% in 2012.

Positive comments centered on innovation, rewards and loyalty programs. The vibe was most positive in Latin America, with positivity at 96% compared to the 91% global average.

Security appears to have improved over time as 91% of security-related comments regarding mobile payments were favorable in 2014 compared to only 20% in 2012.

In Latin America 73% of security-related comments were positive compared to 25% in 2013.

Increased use and understanding of biometrics and tokenization contributed considerably to the more positive evaluation in 2014, the study said.

Notwithstanding the positive conversations regarding security, the volume of these conversations was a small percentage of the conversations as a whole.

Conversations regarding digital innovation and the improved mobile user experience accounted for 71% of the total in 2014.

The convenience of mobile payments was the issue that saw the most positive comments overall, with a 94% positive rating as consumers enthusiastically shared positive purchasing experiences on social networks.

In Latin America both consumers and retailers showed great acceptance of the mobile shopping experience, with comments on this issue accounting for 41% of total conversations on social networks.

The study tracked comments on the most popular social networks including Twitter, Facebook, Instagram, Foros, Weibo, Google + and YouTube.