Privacy Attitudes and Privacy Behavior

What is it about?

Several surveys have identified personal information security and privacy as some of the most pressing concerns of those using new information technology. On the Internet, sales for billions of dollars are said to be lost every year because of information security fears. At the same time, several technologies have been made available to protect individuals’ personal information and privacy in almost any conceivable scenario - from browsing the Internet to purchasing on- and off-line. With some notable exceptions, very few of these technologies have been successful in the marketplace. There is apparently a demand, and there is an offer. So, why does market clearing seem to be absent? In this paper we discuss which factors play a role in the decision process of individuals with respect to their privacy and information security concerns, and advance hypotheses about why individuals’ information security attitudes seem inconsistent with their behavior.

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