Are data breaches the new norm? Exploring data breach trends, consumer sentiment, and responses to security invasions

Abstract

Although data breaches are common, limited knowledge exists regarding consumer sentiments towards them and the personal actions taken following a breach. First, we explore trends using a database chronicling 14 years of breaches. Then, guided by Social Contract Theory, our study analyzes a secondary dataset of survey responses from 890 affected consumers to understand perceptions of breaches, including attitudes towards businesses, expected actions businesses take following a breach, and protective actions. The integration of Social Contract Theory with Privacy Calculus Theory and Protection Motivation Theory in the study of data breaches provides a lens to examine how context-specific attributes impact consumer actions following a breach. Our findings show that data breaches are frequent, vary across industries, and consumer attitudes and actions vary by data type compromised.