--- description: Capterra surveyed 1,000 Australians on how they feel about their consumer data privacy when shopping online with their favourite brands. Read more here. image: https://gdm-localsites-assets-gfprod.imgix.net/images/capterra/og_logo-e5a8c001ed0bd1bb922639230fcea71a.png?auto=format%2Cenhance%2Ccompress title: Consumer data privacy: What are online shoppers’ concerns? --- # Consumer data privacy: 84% of online shoppers want more control over how companies use their personal information Canonical: https://www.capterra.com.au/blog/3232/consumer-data-privacy-research-australia Published on 16/11/2022 | Written by Laura Burgess. ![Consumer data privacy: 84% of online shoppers want more control over how companies use their personal information](https://images.ctfassets.net/63bmaubptoky/3DkzQz6nE3V10w5n4oVxb5/82878c9bf2875d345ffe0519b3bf3e0f/consumer-data-privacy-AU-CAP-header.png) > This report is the second in a series on consumer data privacy. In part one, Capterra examined the importance of a first-party data strategy for marketers. Here, we look at how consumers feel about the use of their personal information by brands, especially regarding online data security concerns. ----- ## Article Content This report is the second in a series on consumer data privacy. In part one, Capterra examined the importance of a first-party data strategy for marketers. Here, we look at how consumers feel about the use of their personal information by brands, especially regarding online data security concerns.In this articleMost consumers feel nervous sharing their personal data onlineFinancial information is rated the most sensitive personal data to share onlineA quarter of Aussies leave their phone location tracking turned off most of the time68% of consumers feel online adverts know too much about themIn summaryConsumer data is a growing source of competitive advantage for eCommerce businesses, as capturing data can help brands meet customer expectations. Data management allows companies to recognise the products consumers are most interested in, so they can create personalised adverts based on their findings. Online shoppers may know companies accumulate their data, as some sites directly ask for permission, but do they understand what it really means? Do consumers know how their information is being used, and if so, how do they feel about it? What are the concerns surrounding consumer data privacy? Capterra interviewed over 1,000 consumers who shop online at least once a month to find out. The methodology can be found at the bottom of this article. Highlights of the study:84% of online consumers want more control over how companies collect and use their personal information63% of Aussies are nervous sharing personal information with online companies68% of consumers feel online adverts know too much about them85% would be more willing to share their personal data if they knew what was being collected and whyMost consumers feel nervous sharing their personal data onlineCapterra’s survey found that 84% of consumers would like more control over how companies collect and use their information. This is perhaps because consumers want to trust in a brand and, most importantly, ensure their valuable data is protected. Many consumers willingly give up their data when shopping online, but as cybercrimes continue to increase in Australia, more media stories report these cyberattacks. News coverage means there is an increase in public awareness of data privacy concerns. Fears of data breaches and misuse have left consumers on high alert about the safety of their online data. In the last few months alone, many major Australian businesses, such as Medibank, Optus, and Energy Australia, have reported serious cyberattacks, resulting in the exposure of millions of consumers’ personal data. It comes as no surprise, therefore, that 63% of Capterra’s survey-takers say they are nervous about sharing their personal information with companies when shopping online. In comparison, only 9% disagreed.Previous research by Capterra on checkout-free shopping also found consumers were concerned about the link between smartphone technologies, such as online shopping apps, and personal data. Over half of those surveyed (51%) placed ‘having data hacked’ as fourth out of the top five worries about using checkoutless shopping. Financial information is rated the most sensitive personal data to share online Businesses collect and use many types of sensitive consumer data, but what personal information are consumers most wary of sharing? Capterra asked survey participants to rate different types of first-party data according to their sensitivity. Unsurprisingly, most consumers (70%) rated ‘financial information’ as the most sensitive data to share with an online company, as bank cards and account numbers can often be vulnerable to fraudulent activity. ‘Contact information’, such as an email address (53%), and ‘location information’ (51%) were also in the top three.‘Health information’ was rated the fifth most sensitive type of data. This comes as a surprise given the massive Medibank cyberattack, which has left 9.7 million Australians vulnerable. In early November 2022, customers discovered their health records were publicly leaked on the dark web. To date, the hacker is also threatening to release the private medical information of some high-profile Australians. Medibank said it believes the cybercriminal has also accessed the names, dates of birth, addresses, phone numbers, and email addresses of current and former customers.Unfortunately, as well as causing financial losses, a data breach can also impact a company’s reputation. Companies should always assume a cyberattack is inevitable and not only implement tools, such as multi-factor authentication and password management, but educate employees on security measures. What to do if your company experiences a digital data breachThe following steps should be followed in the aftermath of a cyberattack:Contain and investigate the breach: Identify which servers and systems have been compromised and immediately change any passwords.Notify insurers and law enforcement: If you have insurance, notify your provider. If you don’t have coverage, consider investing in cyber insurance to protect your business. Notify your customers and third parties: Send a notification about the data breach. Let clients know if the attack will affect their personal details and data privacy.Notify regulatory authorities: Data breaches involving personal or credit information need to be reported to the Office of the Australian Information Commissioner (OAIC).Reassess and improve your security measures: Remain vigilant in case of another attempt and ensure you have a cyber incidence response plan in place.  A quarter of Aussies leave their phone location tracking turned off most of the time As ‘location information’ ranked in the top three types of personal data consumers find the most sensitive to share online, it’s unsurprising that most survey-takers like to manage the geo-location data on their smartphones. Over half of consumers surveyed (57%) said they turn their location tracking on and off, depending on which application they use. A quarter of survey respondents (25%) said they leave it turned off most of the time. At an overall glance, Capterra’s survey has found that there is a level of distrust from consumers as to how online companies use their data. Again, this could be related to news stories highlighting unfortunate scenarios. In August 2022, Google was fined $60 million for misleading consumers about the collection of their personal location data. This affected the owners of 1.3 million Australian accounts between January 2017 and December 2018.Google informed some Android users they could stop data collection by switching off the ‘Location History’ setting. Users were not informed that they needed to turn off another setting, ‘Web \& App Activity’. This is turned on by default and enables Google to collect data on the consumer’s activities and target them with ads. Location data is key for marketers but should not come at the customers' expense. When asked which benefits would make survey-takers more likely to share location information with a brand, ‘delivery to their location’ was the most selected answer (59%). This was followed by ‘directions to the nearest retail location’ (37%) and to ‘check local inventory’ (36%). 68% of consumers feel online adverts know too much about themMarketing specialists can tailor online adverts for consumers by collecting first- and third-party data, such as their browsing history and interests, which personalises the customer’s journey. But can targeted adverts sometimes feel a little too targeted? Most consumers surveyed by Capterra (68%) said they feel like online ads know too much about them. Whilst 14% were unsure, only 18% of survey-takers said no as a definitive answer. Whilst it can be convenient to see adverts marketing products and services that appeal to a customer’s particular needs, it can stray into unethical territory. Thanks to the Australian Law Consumer (ALC), however, businesses must not mislead or deceive consumers, as seen, for example, with Google being stopped from collecting location data. Consumers require transparency when it comes to companies collecting their data. 85% of survey-takers said they would be more willing to share their personal data if they knew exactly what was being collected and why. This openness can give customers peace of mind knowing their information is being used fairly and ethically. In summaryAs cyberattacks are happening to some of the major household-named companies in Australia, it’s no wonder people feel extra cautious about their consumer data privacy.  In fact, almost half of all survey respondents (46%) say they feel more concerned about the privacy practices of online companies over the last 12 months, and only 16% are less concerned. Smaller companies are just as susceptible to cyber criminals and must ensure they have both a prevention plan and a strategy in place to mitigate any data breach incidences. Capterra’s research has shown that consumers have an awareness or even some level of paranoia about how much of their information is being collected by online companies. Transparency on how data is collected, used, and shared is essential for customer loyalty and trust and can be achieved by the company being open about its data use policies.  Looking for data management software? Check out our catalogue. ## Disclaimer > Methodology:Data for Capterra’s First-Party Data survey was collected in September 2022. Results comprise responses from 1,036 Australian participants. The criteria to be selected for this study are as follows:Australian residentBetween 18 and 65 years of ageShops online at least once a month ## About the author ### Laura Burgess Laura is a Content Analyst at Capterra, researching and giving insight on tech trends to help SMEs. 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