Depending on age, geographic location and experience, consumers have various levels of understanding about how their personal data is used and protected, and different tolerance levels about sharing it.

As a result, new laws and regulations for data privacy are emerging to govern how organisations collect and use consumer data, which will have a significant impact on marketing organisations in every industry. Today’s marketers are questioning what data they can legally collect, store and use – and how will they provide value and establish trust among a consumer audience that is bombarded with stories about data breaches and identity theft?

One thing that remains clear is that it is critical brands focus their privacy initiatives well beyond meeting the minimum legal requirements, educate and empower their consumers by being transparent and proactive, and deliver tangible value in exchange for personal data.

iProspect has released key findings from its latest global survey on data privacy.  The survey was conducted online with 23,867 responses from 16 countries across APAC, Africa, North America, South America and the European Union.

Ten key findings to come out of the research are:

• 87 per cent of respondents say they believe data privacy is a right, not a privilege.
• Nearly half (49 per cent) think data privacy is a shared responsibility among businesses, individuals, governmental bodies and technology innovators.
• Consumers in EMEA are more concerned about data privacy than consumers in other regions.
• The vast majority (91 per cent) are concerned about the amount of data companies can collect about them.
• 64 per cent are concerned about the amount of data being collected, and of those with concerns, 72 per cent have stopped using a product or service because of those concerns.
• 88 per cent have either refused to give or provided false information when asked to provide personal information.  Data security being the main reason.
• Only 24 per cent see the value of personalisation as the result of sharing data, and just 15 per cent feel they’re getting good value from granting access to their data.
• Millennials see more value in personalisation and expect to get more from agreeing to share their personal data than consumers in other groups.
• 85 per cent say their relationship with a company changed following a data breach, and 65 per cent said they stopped doing business with that company altogether.
• 91 per cent who experienced a data breach reported decreased levels of trust with the companies involved.

For Australian marketers, it is important to see what the attitudes in other parts of the world are as they can have a direct impact. GDPR changed the way some businesses in Australia recorded and held data about users as the law goes beyond the EU.

“We know that the ACCC Digital Platforms Report highlighted the “lag” of privacy laws in Australia compared to other countries and have recommended they are closer in line with both GDPR and that another review is due next year into whether any improvements to the privacy act are required. Nevertheless, brands in Australia are having to change their privacy policies anyway, before legislation changes occur in Australia,” said iProspect national head of analytics & measurement Thomas Galluzzo.

“Brands in Australia need to also start thinking about “zero party data” this is data that the user has provided themselves around their own preference not inferred like first party data. We know that people in marketing love a buzzword, but brands do need to have a think about ways to make some of the data collected specifically entered by the user. Users actually want personalisation, especially loyal customers, and therefore it is important to ensure data that is held about them is data they have shared with you.”