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The technology industry has been ranked most-trusted for the second consecutive year, ahead of the automotive, and food and beverage industries, according to the 2013 Edelman Trust Barometer.

"As an industry, I think tech companies pre-anticipate and solve problems for consumers," Ben Boyd, Edelman's corporate global practice chairman, told Mashable. "I also think in today's world where technology is connecting people, it's the companies that get credit for making it happen. It really creates a halo effect for the industry itself."

The findings of the Trust Barometer, an annual survey of 31,000 people in 26 countries evaluating trust in leaders, institutions and industries, were released Monday at the World Economic Forum in Davos, Switzerland. Edelman's primary takeaway from the study of people in 26 countries was an overwhelming distrust in leadership compared to institutions.

The 20-minute online survey was conducted between Oct. 16 and Nov. 29, 2012 by research firm Edelman Berland. The survey was completed by 26,000 general population responders and an oversample of 5,800 informed publics (college educated, high earners who regularly watch the news).

Among respondents, 77% say they trust technology companies, which is down from 79% in 2012. Boyd warns that the tech industry will face more scrutiny should larger data breeches occur.

"It's a double edged sword: As technology enables more data capture and data dissemination, data concerns are going to rise," Boyd says. "For the tech industry, that's how do we continue to deliver value while not compromising things customers' value."

Read more on technology ranking World's Most-Trusted Industry in 2013

The article was originally published on Mashable, January 22, 2013

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