Many in US Feel Negatively About Sharing Personal Data With Companies, Pew Finds

Forty-seven percent of Americans said they felt "confused, discouraged or impatient" when deciding whether to share personal information with companies, Pew Research Center said Wednesday of findings in a new survey asking people about their feelings about the issue. Conducted earlier this year, the survey found that 50 percent were confident they understood how their personal data were being used by companies. But Pew found that "a sizable number of U.S. adults said they were confused over information provided in company privacy policies, discouraged by the amount of effort needed to understand the implications of sharing their data, and impatient because they wanted to learn more about the information-sharing process but felt they needed to make a decision right away." The survey also found few differences in such negative feelings between men and women and between people of different income levels. But Pew said people under age 50 said they felt slightly more impatient about providing personal data than did those 50 and older. The latest survey mirrors other polls saying Americans feel they have less control over how their information is shared and used, Pew said.