A qualitative study exploring customers’ reactions towards companies that are negligent with their personal data

Abstract

With the increase of the amount of personal information stored by organisations, privacy and data breaches are becoming more common. These breaches can result in financial loss, lost records, leading to identity theft and related crimes. In this study, the researcher explores consumers reactions towards privacy flaws and private information data breaches caused by the negligence of a company. This research study found that consumers react negatively to companies that are negligent with their personal data. Furthermore, the study found that all participants had lost their trust and loyalty towards a company that exposed their personal data. Data was collected using a semi-structured interview approach as it enabled the researcher to explore the views, experiences and beliefs of the participants on specific matters thus providing the researcher with a deeper understanding of the phenomenon. Recommendations were made for future researchers to increase the sample size so more rigorous data could be generated. It was also recommended that customers reactions towards companies that do not safeguard their customers’ personal data is explored across the country of South Africa.