Smartphone Privacy: Protecting Consumers

Technology is more personal than ever. Consumers reach for their smartphones to share a photo, text a friend, browse the web, play a game, find directions and more. They also want transparency and choice when it comes to privacy on their mobile activities.

•	74% believe it is very important to understand what information a mobile app collects.

•	98% believe it is important to have easy access to control personal information that is collected and shared.

To compete for consumer’s loyalty and engagement, mobile website and app developers are building responsible privacy practices and disclosures into their technical designs and outward facing privacy policies. What to consider when creating a responsible privacy policy for smartphones, feature phones, and tablets:

Mobile Privacy Policy Compliance Is Spotty
The California Online Privacy Protection Act is a mobile privacy law that requires developers to display a privacy policy on their app or risk a $2,500 fine per download. The leading app stores now require publishers to disclose their privacy policy. Yet, two-thirds of the top 50 apps in the iTunes and Android stores lack a privacy policy. A trusted privacy policy could be a differentiator for your mobile app or website.

Privacy Policies Look Different on Smartphones
Only 2% of mobile privacy policies are optimized for mobile viewing. Most mobile web sites and apps simply link to the publisher’s website privacy policy. But a 2,000-word web site privacy policy may not be viewable on a mobile device. It may be unclear whether disclosures apply to mobile use or other website properties. A short notice privacy policy with graphical links makes privacy easy for consumers to manage.

Mobiles Collect Different Data
Smartphones and mobile apps are designed for a convenient, personalized, location-aware experience, using unique device identifiers, geo-location, and data sharing. A mobile privacy policy discloses all personal data that is collected and how it is used or shared. The best mobile privacy policies disclose data collection practices and give consumers a meaningful choice to turn it off. But if you don’t need it, don’t collect it.

Oops! Mobile Privacy Created by Design
Developers and publishers can avoid unintended privacy invasions by taking proactive steps for data privacy in all areas of business. A privacy review should be part of technical and business development processes. By designing privacy options into an app or mobile website, consumers are empowered to make informed decisions about what personal information is collected and how it is shared.

Free Mobile App Privacy Policy
Get started today with a free mobile app privacy policy from TRUSTe, the leader in online trust: