Study Finds That Tech Fails People Every Week

Nearly one in two people say technology fails them once a week or more, a new study commissioned by CRITICAL Software has revealed.

The OnePoll survey of 2,000 people also found that only half of people think the tech in their lives is properly tested before being sold, despite 98% stating that the reliability of the tech they use is important.

95% of people say that having technology properly tested by industry experts is important, much more than those who stress the importance of the brand behind the tech (73%), where it was purchased (70%), or where it was made (61%).

The study also found that people prefer to use tested technology that is proven to work over tech that is completely new. 52% of people say that using the latest and newest forms of technology is important to them, while 95% of people say that technology that’s proven to work is important.

When asked what the most important reason for technology needing to be reliable is, 61% of people identify safety or security as their main concern, with the next most important reason being ease of use (11%).

Nuno Silva, CRITICAL Software’s Chief Test Engineer, said: “For all the awe-inspiring developments, people still seem to have concerns about the reliability of the technology we use in our lives. The pressure to release new technologies can sometimes come at a cost to reliability. The problem with this is that more and more technologies are becoming critical to our day-to-day lives, impacting things like safety and security, and the consequences of getting these things wrong can be catastrophic.”

95% of people say that some form of safety-accreditation is important to them when assessing the reliability of tech. A whopping 91% state that they would be concerned about using tech that had no safety accreditation.

Half of people say that a high price point offers them little reassurance that an item of technology is reliable. 71% say that celebrity endorsement does little to persuade them too, suggesting that companies wanting to build trust would be better off focusing on properly testing tech and providing guarantees, evidence and safety-accreditations.

Nuno Silva, CRITICAL Software, added: “Today, more and more technologies are being used in important systems. For example, modern cars include complex systems that are increasingly responsible for safety features and banks use advanced security technologies to protect online systems. As these kinds of technologies have a bigger impact on our lives, the importance of ensuring they are reliable is more important than ever.”

When asked about the future, 42% of people believe technology will be more reliable, 42% think it will remain the same and only 6% of people think that technology will become less reliable. 10% say they are not sure.

Find out more about how to ensure tech is reliable by visiting testyourtech.net.

-Ends-

Notes to Editors:

For more information, please contact Ciara Mulkerrins via cmulkerrins@criticalsoftware.com or +44 (0)23 8011 1355.

About Test Your Tech:
Test Your Tech is a campaign designed to raise awareness of the importance of testing technology properly to ensure it is reliable and safe to use. A study of 2,000 individuals explores people's attitudes to technology and what steps can be taken to ensure that it is fit for purpose. testyourtech.net

About CRITICAL Software:
CRITICAL Software is an international company providing dependable solutions, services and technologies for safety, mission and business-critical information systems, helping to ensure its clients meet the most demanding quality standards for software safety, performance and reliability. Its data engineering products and services also provide clients with the information they need to manage their important assets, helping them to achieve better business performance.

Founded in Portugal in 1998, CRITICAL Software currently has offices in Coimbra, Lisbon and Porto, the UK (Southampton), Germany (Munich) and the USA (California). The company operates a quality management system certified to CMMI® Level 5, ISO 9001:2008, EN 9100, AQAP 2110 and 2210 (NATO), and adheres to the standards set out by ISO 12207 and ISO 15504 (SPICE). For more information, visit www.criticalsoftware.com.