Study: Consumers expect more data security regulations

6/7/2018
Growing frustrated with how companies handle customer data, Americans want government regulations to better support data privacy.

As if increasing data breaches aren’t enough, the unauthorized pilfering of 87 million Facebook users’ data by political data firm Cambridge Analytica in March, has put Americans’ awareness of data privacy at an all-time high. These factors have 60% percent of respondents believing that the U.S. government should regulate how companies use consumer data, according to a study from Sailthru, a personalized marketing automation technology provider.

The study surveyed individuals who downloaded their Facebook data after the Cambridge Analytic incident in March, and those who did not. More than half of respondents from both groups do not trust brands to keep their data safe, however people who downloaded their Facebook data are slightly more likely to trust them than those who did not download it (12% vs. 7%, respectively).

More than 42% of all respondents from both groups are either not aware or were not sure that when using Facebook to log onto sites, those sites have access to their Facebook and personal data. Nearly half of all respondents from both groups will delete at least one social media account in the next 12 months, according to the data.

"Personal data is not simply property to be acquired, sold and resold, but is permanently and intimately connected with a person, so it must be treated thoughtfully and respectfully," said Neil Lustig CEO of Sailthru.
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