In anticipation of an approaching holiday shopping season in which the vast majority of consumers plan to do their shopping online, American consumer credit reporting agency TransUnion has released its 2019 Holiday Retail Fraud Survey.

A key finding of the survey of 2,593 American adults conducted in October by TransUnion centred around the threat of online fraud. The findings showed that almost half of those surveyed (46%) are worried about being victims of online fraud this holiday season. The percentage among Gen Z participants who responded as being worried about fraud (38%) was lower when compared to the Baby Boomer generation (54%).

The majority of respondents reported that they wanted both security and convenience in their online shopping experience, while half said that the convenience of autofill for personal and credit card information was important, while 48% said mobile biometric security was of high importance as well.

“More and more consumers are turning to online shopping, yet consumers demand that retailers not only provide them with a secure checkout process, but also make it as convenient as possible,” said Geoff Miller, head of global fraud and identity solutions at TransUnion. “For retailers, providing a seamless transaction experience can be a make or break situation during the ultra-competitive holiday shopping season as consumers have many shopping options online as well as the ability to shop at tried and true brick and mortar stores,” he added.

With security being a major focus of study, findings show that the majority of consumers (57%) are willing to go through extra verification steps to ensure the security of their transactions even if it means their order may be suspended due to concerns over possible fraud, though 40% of respondents held a neutral stance on this particular point.

“Retailers need to do all they can to ensure transactions are secure and seamless for all consumers. While a good portion of the population is fine with extra verification steps, a lot of them seek an experience that is less intrusive. Retailers that leverage solutions that provide a positive, yet secure experience, will win this holiday season,” concluded Miller.