For all the talk about “privacy,” the word “privacy” can sometimes be a nebulous concept, about which people hold contradictory views. The latest Pew survey helps shed some light on this, asking Americans to rate how important various aspects of privacy are to them.
93 percent consider controlling who can access their information important. 90 percent said that controlling what information others collect is important.
88 percent said it is important to them that they not be watched or listened in on without explicit permission. 93 percent find it important to share “confidential matters” with someone they trust.
The poll also found that few Americans believe that either private companies or the government keep their data secure.
Only 6 percent were “very confident” that the government keeps their records private. 25 percent were “not at all confident,” and 21 percent were “not too confident.”
Telephone companies received similar votes of non-confidence, while only 3 percent said they were very confident about their email provider’s privacy policies. Online video sites, social media sites, and online advertisers had only 1 percent votes of “very confident.”
Yet, at the same time—as other surveys have found—few people change their online behavior due to their belief that their information may be compromised. 91 percent said they had made no changes to their internet or phone use to avoid surveillance.
Most respondents—65 percent—wanted more limits on the type of data the government can collect. And those who were more familiar with the details of government surveillance were even more likely to say the government’s data collection needs more limits.
74 percent of those who had heard “a lot” about surveillance wanted more limits on government. They were also more likely to want a set limit on how long companies can store your data.
More here.
