• by Karlene Lukovitz  @KLmarketdaily, July 21, 2022

A new survey of more than 3,000 U.S. and U.K. consumers by The Harris Poll for advertising platform company Permutive underscores consumers’ growing mistrust of how advertisers are using their personal data. 

Three-quarters of those surveyed expressed discomfort with buying from brands with poor data ethics, and 89% said they’d be more likely to spend money with a brand that makes a commitment to protecting their personal data online over one that doesn't. 

About three-quarters (74%) also said that they’re concerned about brands being able to view and track their online behavior to target them with online advertising. 

One-third (34%) said they believe that brands are responsible for protecting their personal data online, whether they have actively or passively shared that data.  

Only 27% said they feel that they have a thorough understanding of how their personal data is used to target them. 

More than half (51%) say they’d like to choose the types of personal data that are shared online with advertisers, and 42% said that given the option, they would refuse to share any data online with advertisers.  

“We’re faced with consumers opting out of advertising at increasing rates, which will create a bigger shockwave than the demise of third-party cookies,” asserts Permutive CEO and Co-founder Joe Root. “It’s imperative that we rebuild data in advertising to protect consumer privacy by empowering publishers, brands, and ad-tech partners to work together to use data responsibly.” 

The survey was conducted online by The Harris Poll between May 31 and June 1 among adults ages 18+ in the U.S. (n = 2,009) and the U.K. (n = 1,015). Samples were weighted to reflect the overall adult populations.