When passengers think about air travel, convenience tends to dominate expectations: shorter queues, smoother boarding, and fewer delays. Personal data security rarely tops the list.
Yet behind every frictionless journey lies an expanding digital infrastructure. From biometric check-in systems to mobile boarding passes and real-time passenger tracking, airports are processing more personal data than ever before.
New research from Getronics’ 2025 Travel Trust Barometer shows that UK travellers expect convenience over personal data security. Out of the 2,000 people we surveyed, 59% fear the loss of personal data when flying, but 53% still prioritise speed and convenience as their top priority. Getronics’ 2025 Travel Trust Barometer, based on responses from 2,000 UK travellers, highlights a growing tension. While 59% of respondents expressed concern about losing personal data when flying, 53% still prioritised speed and convenience over security safeguards. Only one third identified data protection as a primary travel priority.
This reflects a broader dilemma: passengers increasingly rely on digital services, yet remain uncertain about how their information is stored, shared, and protected.
The growing tension between the demand for frictionless travel and mounting risks around personal data collection is tighter than a budget airline seatbelt, as airports expand their use of biometrics, facial recognition and digital tracking.
Getronics Client Director, Andrew Madigan, said:
“Travellers want quick, seamless journeys, but often don’t realise how much personal data is involved and how it’s used. Our report shows a widespread lack of awareness and control, which puts trust at risk.”
Our report shows that just over half of all travellers said they felt in control of their personal data while booking or taking a flight, but only one in four passengers read terms and conditions.
He added:
“We work with clients in the aviation sector every day, so we know first-hand that the industry is facing an unprecedented surge in hacking attempts. It’s no longer a question of if airports will be targeted by cybercriminals – it’s a matter of when.”
Because Getronics specialises in building resilient industry-leading IT security systems, we protect critical operations. The aviation sector has become an attractive target for cybercriminals due to its high operational criticality and complex supply chains. As airports expand their digital capabilities, resilience and visibility must scale alongside innovation.
For operators, the challenge lies in balancing passenger experience with robust data governance, regulatory compliance, and proactive threat detection.
Scotland’s Cautious Approach to Airport Technology
Survey data suggests regional differences in adoption patterns. Scottish passengers showed a stronger preference for printed boarding passes and expressed lower levels of confidence in how their personal data is managed.
Over 20% reported using both digital and physical boarding passes, indicating a cautious hybrid approach to travel technology.
Confidence levels in Scots are also lower than the UK average, too. Over half of Scottish passengers feel in control of their personal data, the lowest level nationally. The same proportion trust airports to keep their information safe, while 61% believe airports collect more data than necessary.
According to Andrew:
“Technology is becoming an increasingly central part of the airport experience, and that trend is only set to continue as the industry evolves. New technology can be a daunting prospect for all kinds of reasons. Reliability and safety are two key issues, which means airports are having to work hard to keep passengers informed and educated about how planned changes are going to make the air travel experience safer, more convenient and more enjoyable. We’re seeing a growing need to modernise whilst defend against an unprecedented surge in hacking attempts across the sector. Airports need to build that trust, particularly in Scotland, and building a strong digital infrastructure has to sit at the heart of this. Technology will continue to evolve, but airports must ensure that protecting personal data evolves with it.”
Balancing Convenience with Control
Phone, passport, boarding pass, fingerprints, face – everything you need to speed up travel. Under a quarter of the people we surveyed strongly agreed they would be happy to store passport information, or biometric identification, on their phone, but nearly double were open to the idea. Biometric verification and digital identity solutions are gaining acceptance. While fewer than a quarter of respondents strongly agreed with storing passport or biometric data on mobile devices, a significantly larger share indicated openness under the right transparency and security conditions.
Using facial recognition as a primary way to verify personal security info seems like a good idea to many, who reported feeling fairly comfortable with the concept.
“The good news for airports is that this is not a rejection of technology – it is a request for transparency and control. Travellers are open to greater use of tech if it makes their journey simpler, and when they understand how their data will be used.”
Only 340 people said they had no preference for paper or digital boarding passes, though nearly 30% sided with one or the other, showing that boarding pass preference divides the UK.
“This shows that passenger behaviour is changing, but systems must remain inclusive. Trust depends on giving people options rather than forcing them into unknown territory which could be too much, too soon.”
Getronics continues to work with leading UK airports to build secure, high-performance IT infrastructures, so that they’re capable of meeting the demands of modern air travel. By combining cutting-edge cybersecurity with a passenger-first approach, Getronics helps air providers modernise with confidence, keeping both feet in the air, and their head on the ground.
As digital transformation accelerates across the aviation sector, trust will increasingly determine passenger acceptance of emerging technologies. Airports that combine secure infrastructure with transparent communication will be better positioned to balance convenience with confidence.
