Concern with Personal Data Misuse Remains Extremely High

The latest findings from the 2018 GRBN Trust Survey show that across the globe people remain very concerned about the safety of their personal data. On average across the eight countries surveyed, 83% of people surveyed say they are very or fairly concerned that their personal data might be misused, with as many as four-in-ten saying they are very concerned about this. Our data also shows that the level of concern people have has not come down compared to two years ago.

Do young people care about their personal data?

Our data indicates that the overall level of concern among young adults is just as high as among older people, but the amount who are very concerned is indeed slightly lower among the younger adults. Given, however the overall level of concern, we don’t think it is valid to state that young people do not care about their personal data as is often heard. Perhaps it is fairer to say that some young adults are more familiar with how their personal data is used and understand the risks.

Do people trust social media companies with their personal data?

Our data shows clearly that there is a low level of trust when it companies to social media companies protecting people’s personal data.

Do people trust MR companies with their personal data then?

We are going to hold back on answering this question for a couple of weeks, as we will be unveiling all the key findings from the Trust Survey and their implications for the market research industry at the Corporate Researcher Conference in Orlando on the 8th October. If you can’t join us in Orlando, you can read the highlights in the next issue of Global News out on the 8th October. Whatever the answer to this question, one thing is sure from the above high level of concern surrounding personal data misuse, and that is that we will have to work harder than ever as an industry and as individual companies to address people’s concerns and be transparent about how we are using their personal data and why. We would like to take this opportunity to thank our partners on the Trust Survey without whose generous contributions we would not have been able to conduct this research.