Consumers Will Share Data Despite Privacy Fears: Study

Consumers are willing to share information with brands they trust despite continuing doubts about online privacy, according to a study by FigLeaf. But there are limits, depending on such factors as gender and age.

Of the consumers polled, 68% do not believe that online privacy is possible. In addition, 52% are skeptical about commitments made by firms such as Facebook and Google to add stronger protections.

Twenty-eight percent of women and 29% of men think they know every company and website that is holding data on them.

However, 48% of women are reluctant to share their location data or have it tracked, versus 37% of men. In addition, 68% of women are likely to share less online due to privacy worries, compared to 54% of males.

Concerns also vary by age. Of the respondents over age 30, 28% believe the responsibility for privacy rests on companies. But only 15% of younger people concur, believing they should control it themselves. In addition, 12% of young consumers feel confident in GDPR, compared to 6% of people over 45.

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In addition, people under 45 are almost twice as likely as those over that age to believe online privacy is possible.

“Consumers have voiced the fact they are not unwilling to share personal data,” states Pankaj Srivastava, COO and CMO of FigLeaf. “They simply want greater insight into how that data is used, and they want more choice and control over when they share personal information and with whom.”

FigLeaf surveyed 4,000 consumers in the U.S. and the UK.

 

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