Fear of data-misuse influences online-shopping behavior
Although many people have been online-shopping for years the fear of the misuse of personal data remains. A recent study of the German company Fittkau and Maaß shows, that concerns about data security still are an important issue when people use the internet for their shopping. According to the study there is almost no difference between the experienced users and the internet newcomers.
Find out more about consumer behaviour in online-shops.
Here are some facts:
More than half (56%) of the internet users are afraid of the misuse of their personal data when they shop online. The result of the user analysis WB3 that was based on a poll asked 121233 German speaking respondants questions about their online-shopping behaviour. Number one of the worst fears of online-customers is the fear of transfer of data and receiving unwanted newsletters from third parties. The second place was taken by bad customer ratings (45%) and third place by unsecure payment methods (43%).
Clear communication of the methods of data protection
One of the interesting results of the study was that the experienced online-users (59%) had more concerns of their personal data being misused than the newcomers. 79% of the respondents said that they consider an online-shops safe when the adequacy of Data protection clearly communicated in the shop.
It is a fact that hardly anyone believes in the security of personal data in the internet. Only one in ten persons believes that the online-shop follows the Data protection laws but two thirds think that companies misuse their data for advertising. Looking at these facts it is no surprise that people prefer to use pseudonyms instead of their real name.
27 % percent of the respondents admitted having used false names in the internet. Even when registering online people don’t like to give away their details. The reason given by most people was the fear of data misuse. One out of five users admitted having used false names when registering on websites. 66% percent said that they had used false names in order to prevent receiving unwanted e-mails. 62% percent said they were afraid of their data being sold to third parties.
Conclusion
Data protection is an important issue for many consumers. In order to increase the trust that people have in a website e-tailers should have clear communication on their website about how personal data is handled in their online-shop. There are different sources of trust that people consider when shopping online. It can be a strong brand name of a well known bricks and mortar business that is also selling online or a recommendation of friends, collegues or family member that works as source of trust.
A trustmark like the Trusted Shops seal of approval can increase the trust people have in a website because it works as an inmdependant source of trust. The Trusted Shops accreditation protocol contains more than 100 criteria a shop has to fulfil in order to display the Trusted Shops trustmark on it’s website. About 20 % per cent of the criteria are about data protection and data security.
In this context it is important to note that the Trusted Shops criteria set a higher standard of Data Protection than provided by law in the Data Protection Act and the e-Privacy Regulations. Communicating this together with the display of Trusted Shops trustmark in your online-shop can help to build trust and confidence in your shop and eventuallywill help to turn visitors of your online-shop into customers.
