The Office of the Australian Information Commissioner (OAIC) has said data privacy is now the number one consideration for Australians when choosing a digital service, with 97% of those it surveyed saying this factor trumps cost and reliability.
In its 2020 Australian Community Attitudes to Privacy Survey, which was shaped after questioning 2,866 adults, the OAIC said 59% of respondents had experienced problems with how their data was handled in the previous 12 months. The survey was conducted from February to March this year, with additional research performed in early April.
The report[1] [PDF] said 70% of respondents considered the protection of their personal information to be a major concern in their lives. Identify theft and fraud was the biggest privacy risk identified, with 76% of respondents pointing to this as a major concern. The category of data security and data breaches was second, with 61%; digital services, including social media sites sat at 58%; smartphone apps at 49%; and surveillance by foreign entities was flagged as a major concern by 35% of respondents, while that figure was 26% when they were asked about Australian entities.
"Our comfort with certain data practices depends on the type of information collected, the purpose behind it, and the level of trust in the organisation involved. Australians appear more comfortable with data practices where the purpose is clearly understood -- for example, law enforcement using facial recognition and video surveillance to identify suspects," Commissioner Angelene Falk said in her foreword.
See also: 'Booyaaa': Australian Federal Police use of Clearview AI detailed[2]
The report says that there is a strong understanding of why individuals should protect their personal information, but respondents were less sure how they could do this, with 49%