Study: Americans Wary of Providing Personal Information
When it comes to providing personal information, few processes are more naked than applying for a mortgage.
But for other commercial settings, Americans appear to be stingy about divulging private information and wary about how that information is used. A new study from the Pew Research Center showed while many Americans are willing to share personal information in exchange for tangible benefits, they are often cautious about disclosing their information and frequently unhappy about what happens to that information once companies have collected it.
In online focus groups and in open-ended responses to a nationally representative online survey, many respondents expressed concerns about the safety and security of their personal data in light of numerous high-profile data breaches. They also regularly expressed anger about the barrage of unsolicited emails, phone calls, customized ads or other contacts that inevitably arises when they elect to share some information about themselves.
“The phrase that best captures Americans’ views on the choice between privacy vs. disclosure of personal information is, ‘It depends,'” said study authors Lee Rainie and Maeve Duggan. “People’s views on the key tradeoff of the modern, digital economy–namely, that consumers offer information about themselves in exchange for something of value–are shaped by both the conditions of the deal and the circumstances of their lives…It depends on what happens to their data after they are collected, especially if the data are made available to third parties. And it also depends on how long the data are retained.”
The study said notable shares of the public say their consideration of each individual scenario is conditional: Their answer depends on the circumstances of the offer, their trust in those collecting and storing the data and their sense of what the aftermath of data-sharing might look like.
“Some issues people ponder as they consider privacy tradeoffs include the likelihood of getting spam, the risk of data breaches, the special intimacy tied to location data and overdone customer profiling,” the study said.
The study said respondents believed potential benefits of sharing personal information include saving money, gaining access to useful services or information and facilitating commercial and social encounters.
“Even as they worry about the negative downstream consequences of sharing their personal information, these findings also illustrate that consumers understand and appreciate the benefits of sharing–at least under certain circumstances,” the study said. “Where does this leave Americans? Many focus group participants are uncertain, resigned and annoyed–or worse. Still, some accept this is part of modern life and others are hopeful that technological and legal solutions can be found.”
The study can be accessed at http://www.pewinternet.org/2016/01/14/privacy-and-information-sharing/.
