40% of Consumers Say a Targeted Online Ad Has Made Them Feel Uncomfortable

Jason Hahn | DM Confidential | July 18th, 2012

A new report from TRUSTe finds that online behavioral advertising (OBA) has made 40 percent of consumers feel uncomfortable, while a majority of consumers say online privacy is an important issue that they think about often.

According to TRUSTe’s “2012 U.S. Online and Mobile Privacy Perceptions Report,” conducted online by Harris Interactive, 58 percent of responding consumers say they don’t like OBA. Meanwhile, 42 percent of smartphone users say privacy and security are top concerns, and 85 percent say they won’t download apps they don’t trust.

The report also found that 60 percent of adults are more concerned about online privacy today than they were last year. TRUSTe notes that 49 percent of consumers check for independent privacy certification or seals, up from 41 percent in 2011.

“Our 2012 findings show that managing consumer concerns through good privacy practices must remain on the forefront in order to stem mistrust,” said Chris Bable, CEO of TRUSTe. “With increased understanding about choices, the survey also shows that consumers react more positively to the potential value of new online technologies, such as OBA.”

According to the survey, negative feelings toward OBA drop from 69 percent to 40 percent when users believe that their personally identifiable information isn’t linked to their browsing behavior. Meanwhile, 61 percent of consumers are inclined to do more business with a site that offers opt-out choices for OBA, up from 55 percent last year.

The report also found that 94 percent of consumers deem privacy an important issue, with 55 percent saying it’s a really important issue they think of often. Meanwhile, 69 percent of consumers say they trust themselves most when it comes to protecting their own personal information online.

TRUSTe found that consumers are taking matters into their own hands when it comes to protecting their privacy, as 76 percent don’t allow companies to share their personal information with a third party, 35 percent have stopped doing business with a company or using their website because of privacy concerns, and 90 percent use browser controls to protect privacy.

Meanwhile, 40 percent of consumers say a targeted online advertisement has made them feel uncomfortable, 50 percent will opt out of OBA to manage their privacy and 53 percent believe personally identifiable information is attached to browsing behavior.

Regarding mobile concerns, TRUSTe found that 62 percent of smartphone users are aware that advertisers track mobile activities for mobile ads, but only 1 percent likes this.

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