Today In Data: Big Changes In Unexpected Places

Change can be disorienting, particularly when it comes at a fast pace. It’s why the news that 44 million Americans owe over $1 trillion in student loan debt seems shocking. It’s why it’s surprising that sloppy data security hygiene and well-placed bad actors are a bigger security threat to the next generation than hacking technology. But not all changes are concerning ones: The digital reformation of commerce over the last five years and the continual expansion of mobile indicate that consumers like the changes more than they are bothered by the risks.

Data:

$1.5 trillion: The total amount of student debt owed by Americans.

$500 billion: The approximate value of transactions processed by Braintree since being acquired by PayPal in 2013.

38.5 percent: Share of shoppers who report being satisfied with using mobile payments.

24.3 percent: Share of customer who spent more than $500 on their last purchase made via smartphone.

2-3: The number of insiders within most firms needed for cybercriminals to break in, according to Ron Gula, a former white-hat hacker for the NSA.