MELBOURNE, 13 March 2013 –  A snapshot survey* of online shopping habits conducted by AVG Technologies AU in Australia and  New Zealand has revealed shoppers’ preferences and concerns in those countries.

With 82.1 percent of respondents to the survey having made online purchases in the last 12 months, buying online is now an accepted way of comparing offerings and a trusted buying method. Convenience (44.2 percent) and price (37 percent) were cited as the two major factors for online shopping.

Michael McKinnon, Security Advisor at AVG, comments on the survey results: “It’s encouraging to see that our safety-aware messages are starting to break through and that many of those responding to the survey are checking the security options when shopping online.”

Unfortunately, 50.8 percent of respondents have had a computer virus experience; only 19.1 percent looked for “https://” in the URL, indicating a secure website; and a mere 9.3 percent elected to only buy from local websites. On the positive side, the security measures now used by respondents showed 78.5 percent had installed always on, automatically updated anti-virus and Internet security software.

The survey results show that consumers feel safest when purchasing via PayPal, which registered as the preferred payment method at 48 percent, followed by using a Credit Card (33 percent), Debit Card (16 percent), EFTPOS (2.8 percent) and with just 1 percent opting for BPAY.

The survey revealed the greatest influences on choice came from brand familiarity (41 percent), product reviews (37.3 percent) and suggestions from family and friends (15.4 percent). 81.3 percent of transactions were for under $100 purchases, indicating that ‘luxury’ items may still be being bought in person from physical retail outlets rather than online.

Possibly due to the age group of the majority of respondents (74.9 percent of whom were aged 50+), 84.2 percent of those surveyed have not yet used a mobile device for online transactions.

Tips

• Use a separate credit card      with a low spending limit for online transactions
• Mobile devices should be      treated and protected as you would a home PC with software such as AVG’s anti-virus      for Android
• Always check for ‘https’ in      the URL – the ‘s’ shows it’s secure

*AVG Online Shopping Survey January 2013 (Download the survey results here)

467 AVG customers from Australia and New Zealand responded to the survey: 56.1 percent men and 43.9 percent women, of whom 74.9 percent were aged 50 and above and 76.8 percent had children

In describing their confidence in and knowledge about computers:

·         Pretty confident – 15 percent

·         Know enough – 41.8 percent

·         Don’t know much but shop regularly online – 20.3 percent

·         Limited – 22.9 percent