Americans are turning nervous about Internet privacy with more than 9-in-10 adults thinking they should have control on what information is collected about them, according to the latest privacy survey conducted by the Pew Research Center.
Anxiety about Internet privacy has grown since government surveillance revelations were made by NSA contractor Edward Snowden in 2013, as well as the latest spew of news stories detailing security breaches at major retailers, health insurance companies and financial institutions.
Personal "data insecurity" now looms over daily decisions and activities.
The new study report show Americans also have exceedingly low levels of confidence in the privacy and security of the records that are maintained by a variety of institutions in the digital age. Most Americans hold strong views about the importance of privacy in their everyday lives.
The new study report shows that 93 percent of the American adults surveyed say being in control of who can get information about you is important, with 74 percent of them saying it is "very important" and 19 percent saying it is "some what important."
Ninety percent of the adults surveyed say that controlling what information is collected about them is important, with 65 percent of them thinking it is "very important" and 25 percent thinking it is "somewhat important."
At the same time, Americans also value having the ability to share confidential matters with another trusted person. Ninety three percent of adults say this ability is important to them, with 72 percent of them saying it is "very important" and 21 percent saying it is "somewhat important."
While some Americans have taken modest steps to stem the tide of data collection, few have adopted advanced privacy-enhancing measures.
At the same time, Americans continue to express the belief that there should be greater limits on government surveillance programs. Additionally, they say it is important to preserve the ability to be anonymous for certain online activities.
The report is based on a Pew Research Center survey conducted between January 27 and February 16, 2015 among a sample of 461 adults, 18 years of age or older. The survey studied Americans' attitudes about privacy, security and surveillance.
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