YONKERS, N.Y.—A new study estimates that more than 70-million American adults had their personal information compromised in 2014.
A national survey conducted by Consumer Reports of more than 3,000 American adults indicated that while some of those incidents may have resulted from stolen credit cards or other crimes, many stemmed from data breaches.
According to the study, 79% of those notified of a data breach were told by a brick-and-mortar store or a financial institution. Just 18% said the problem originated with an online retailer.
Those findings are supported by research from the non-profit Identity Theft Resource Center, which found that a record high 783 data breaches occurred in 2014, up more than 27.5% from 2013, Consumer Reports stated on its website.
But many of the identity theft victims did not change their e-commerce habits. The Consumer Reports survey shows that half of those who were affected by data theft said they did not change their online behavior afterward.