Survey: Data breaches keeping customers away

Americans are spooked by recent data security breaches at major retailers across the U.S., according to a new survey.

A survey by CreditCards.com finds that 45 percent of major credit and debit card holders plan to avoid retailers who were victims of data security breaches where consumers' personal information was exposed.  This includes 29 percent who probably would not shop at these retailers, even if they used to be frequent shoppers, and 16 percent who definitely would no longer shop at these stores.

"Whether they actually stay out of the stores will be due to a lot of factors, including things like location and habit," said Matt Schulz, a senior industry analyst with CreditCards.com.

Hackers have broken security walls for many retailers in recent months, including Target, grocer Supervalu, restaurant chain P.F. Chang’s, Home Depot, Neiman Marcus and the thrift store operations of Goodwill.

But not all shoppers plan to stay away.  In fact, the survey shows that highest-income households, those with an annual income of $75,000 or more, are the least likely to avoid affected retailers.  Only 31 percent in this income bracket say they would avoid affected retailers.

"In that crowd, maybe they have spent a little more time because they have more money or they spent a little more time looking into the issue and realize that they are relatively safe," Schulz said.

For households with an annual income under $30,000, 56 percent plan to stay away from stores that have recently experienced data breaches.

Men are more likely to stop shopping at affected stores than women.

The data breaches have also made some consumers think twice before paying for purchases with credit or debit cards.  Just one in eight Americans say they are more likely to shop with credit cards. Almost half, 48 percent, say they will use more cash this holiday shopping season.

"If you are concerned about it, using your credit card is a far better choice than your debit card," Schulz said.  That is because money is removed from your debit account very quickly, and it can take up to two weeks to get it back.

The survey of 865 major credit card holders living in the U.S. was done for CreditCards.com by Princeton Survey Research Associates between Oct. 2-4, 2014.