This survey uncovered illuminating statistics about consumers' mobile privacy attitudes and concerns and identified areas where mobile app and operating system developers could do more to provide privacy protections through increased transparency, accountability and choice.
The vast majority of survey respondents (98%) believe that privacy is an important issue when using a mobile device and they want more transparency and choice over the personal information mobile apps and websites collect and share, especially as it relates to targeted advertising and geo-location data. Additionally, more than 1 in 3 of consumers (38%) identified privacy as their number one concern when using mobile applications, followed by security (26%) and identity tracking (19%).
Lastly, only 1 in 3 consumers indicated that they feel in control of their personal information when using their smartphones, demonstrating a significant opportunity to build consumer privacy trust on the mobile platform through stronger protections like those offered by TRUSTe's TRUSTed Mobile Apps program.
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This comprehensive report reviews and analyzes major findings from the mobile privacy survey. Read it to gain key insights into consumer mobile behavior and consumer mobile privacy preferences.
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Additional survey findings include:
- Consumers Are Wary of Ad Targeting; Want Opt-Out Ability
Nearly three-quarters of consumers are uncomfortable with the idea of advertiser tracking and 85% want to be able to opt in or out of targeted mobile ads. - Lack of Choice May Heighten Concern With Location Data Use
Only 36 percent of consumers feel they have a choice regarding the collection and use of their location information, which may help explain why 40 percent of consumers report that they purposefully do not share location data with mobile applications. - Bottom Line: Consumers Want Transparency And Choice
74 percent of consumers believe it's "very important" or "extremely important" to understand what personal information a mobile app collects and 98 percent of consumers believe it's important for mobile apps to provide easy access to controls for collecting and sharing personal information. - Consumers Prefer Mobile-Optimized Privacy Policies
52 percent of consumers reported that they have read a privacy policy for a mobile app and 90 percent of consumers preferred TRUSTe's mobile-optimized privacy policy format to standard online privacy policies. - TRUSTe Can Alleviate Mobile Privacy Concerns for Consumers
70 percent of smartphone users recognize the TRUSTe seal and report that its presence increases their privacy comfort level.
About TRUSTe
TRUSTe is the leading global privacy management solutions provider and offers a broad suite of solutions that enable multinational companies to safely and efficiently handle the customer data powering their online businesses - including advertising, cloud services, mobile applications, and websites. Over 5,000 web properties from top companies like Apple, Disney, eBay, Forbes, HP, and Microsoft rely on TRUSTe to ensure compliance with evolving and complex international privacy requirements. TRUSTe's mission, based on a "Truth in Privacy" framework, is built on a solid foundation of transparency, choice and accountability regarding the collection and use of personal information. TRUSTe's privacy seal is recognized and trusted by millions of consumers worldwide as a sign of responsible privacy practices. For additional information on TRUSTe and its offerings, please visit http://www.truste.com.
» Mobile Privacy Survey Press Release
» TRUSTe Blog Posts on Mobile Privacy
» TRUSTe Mobile Whitepaper: Location-Aware Mobile Applications
» TRUSTe Mobile Whitepaper: Building a Trusted Mobile Strategy
» TRUSTe's TRUSTed Mobile Apps Program