New research has claimed consumer awareness of privacy laws and regulations has been steadily rising, and is now at 53%, up from 36% in 2019.
Cisco’s 2024 Consumer Privacy Survey claims this awareness is now translating into higher confidence amongst consumers, with 81% who are aware of their country’s privacy laws confident in their ability to protect data, compared to just 44% of those who have no understanding of the regulations.
Predictably, there’s a strong correlation between age and awareness, as 65% of 18-24 year olds are aware of data privacy laws compared to just 24% of over 75’s. Almost everyone cares about data privacy though, with 89% wanting more control and to protect others online.
Stop telling ChatGPT your bank details
A staggering 80% of respondents were worried about GenAI potentially being ‘bad for humanity’, and 72% are concerned that GenAI will replace jobs. There are overwhelming concerns about misinformation, with 86% concerned that GenAI output could be wrong, and 80% uneasy about its potential to undermine elections.
Despite this, GenAI is being fed vast amounts of personal data – with 37% of users entering health information, 29% giving financial information, and 27% even telling chatbots their account numbers.
There have been reports of GenAI data being stolen, and accounts being hacked, so it’s definitely not a good idea to give your chatbot sensitive information (or anyone for that matter).
The report recommends checking other sources of information to ensure the output of GenAI is correct, and to get a clear understanding of how your data is used and who it could be shared to.
To protect your data, you should also be vigilant about updating your privacy settings and research your privacy rights.
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