B&TB&TB&T
  • Advertising
  • Campaigns
  • Marketing
  • Media
  • Technology
  • Regulars
    • Agency Scorecards
    • Best of the Best
    • Campaigns of the Month
    • CMO Power List
    • CMOs to Watch
    • Culture Bites
    • Fast 10
    • New Business Winners
    • Spotlight on Sponsors
  • Jobs
  • Awards
    • 30 Under 30
    • B&T Awards
    • Cairns Crocodiles
    • Women In Media
    • Women Leading Tech
Search
Trending topics:
  • Cairns Crocodiles
  • Nine
  • Seven
  • Cannes Lions
  • State of Origin
  • NRL
  • WPP
  • Pinterest
  • Thinkerbell
  • B&T Women in Media
  • imaa
  • AFL
  • Anthony Albanese
  • Spotlight on Sponsors
  • AI
  • Meta
  • Foxtel
  • TV Ratings
  • Radio Ratings
  • Sports Marketing

  • About
  • Contact
  • Editorial Guidelines
  • Privacy
  • Terms
  • Advertise
© 2025 B&T. The Misfits Media Company Pty Ltd.
Reading: Study: Aussie Teens Uncomfortable With Targeted Advertising, Want To More Easily Delete Online Profiles
Share
B&TB&T
Subscribe
Search
  • Advertising
  • Campaigns
  • Marketing
  • Media
  • Technology
  • Regulars
    • Agency Scorecards
    • Best of the Best
    • Campaigns of the Month
    • CMO Power List
    • CMOs to Watch
    • Culture Bites
    • Fast 10
    • New Business Winners
    • Spotlight on Sponsors
  • Jobs
  • Awards
    • 30 Under 30
    • B&T Awards
    • Cairns Crocodiles
    • Women In Media
    • Women Leading Tech
Follow US
  • About
  • Contact
  • Editorial Guidelines
  • Privacy
  • Terms
  • Advertise
© 2025 B&T. The Misfits Media Company Pty Ltd.
B&T > Technology > Study: Aussie Teens Uncomfortable With Targeted Advertising, Want To More Easily Delete Online Profiles
Technology

Study: Aussie Teens Uncomfortable With Targeted Advertising, Want To More Easily Delete Online Profiles

Staff Writers
Published on: 4th October 2021 at 1:00 AM
Staff Writers
Share
6 Min Read
SHARE

A new poll finds Australian teens want to more easily delete online profiles and are uncomfortable with targeted advertising.

Australian teenagers want to be able to delete their online profiles, say they’re targeted with hyper-specific ads that make them uncomfortable, and are uninformed about what platforms have access to their private data, according to new polling by Reset Australia. 

The polling, which reveals for the first time what kind of data protection Australian teenagers want to see, comes in anticipation of the government’s own review of the Privacy Act. Key findings from the YouGov polling, conducted on behalf of Reset Australia, include:

  • 81 per cent of surveyed teenagers want the ‘right to delete’, so they can easily request that their personal data be deleted;
  • 58 per cent considered themselves uninformed about when and who their personal data is being shared with;
  • 82 per cent had seen ads so targeted they felt uncomfortable;
  • 72 per cent had been recommended content that made them feel uncomfortable;
  • 77 per cent want privacy settings to be set to the most private options by default, for under 18 year olds;
  • 71 per cent want rules restricting sticky design techniques that use their data to keep them using a product or service for longer; 
  • 79 per cent want to be able to access and know what data is held about them through easy mechanisms;
  • 79 per cent want ‘data minimisation’ rules, or to limit the amount of data that can be collected to only that which is really necessary.

“Young Australians want to see an end to Big Tech’s unfettered use of their most private and intimate data,” said Chris Cooper, executive director of Reset Australia. 

“Young people understand, perhaps better than most, that their data is used to keep them online for longer or target them with hyper-specific, inappropriate, or harmful content. They want to see meaningful regulation of Big Tech, so they can have greater control over their privacy, including the freedom to truly delete social media profiles and reclaim their data.”

Reset Australia, which advocates against digital threats to democracy, is calling on the federal government to use the Privacy Act review as an opportunity to adopt a Children’s Data Code, similar to the UK’s Age Appropriate Design Code and Ireland’s Fundamentals for a Child-Oriented Approach to Data Processing. The Children’s Data Code has been backed by prominent child advocacy organisations, including Child Wise, the Y, UNICEF Australia, Act for Kids, Australian Child Rights Taskforce, Child Fund Australia, the Institute of Child Protection Studies, the Alannah & Madeline Foundation, Plan Australia, ReachOut and the Australian Council on Children and the Media.  

Reset Australia is calling for a code that includes making sure children and parents have meaningfully consented to their data being used, and only absolutely necessary data would be collected. They are also calling for a code to be enforced by a strong and enabled regulation with the power to issue criminal sanctions for extreme breaches. 

“Social media was never designed to factor in children’s rights. We need some ground rules to protect how young people’s data is collected and used, especially given we don’t know the long term ramifications of unchecked data harvesting,” Mr Cooper said. “This needs to be a rigorous code so that children can have meaningful protection.” 

Natalie Siegel-Brown, managing director of Child Wise, said the polling shows young people want clearer data rights and greater control over what personal information is online.   

“Children’s data is now collected from birth. Yet there are no systems in place to protect their online profile, nor is there any expectation social media giants will implement systems to keep children’s information safe.

“The Reset Australia report finds that young people are confused about what they’re consenting to when it comes to how their data is used. Many adults would struggle to understand the terms and conditions they are signing up to, so how can children be expected to understand what will happen with the information they put online? Making terms and conditions easier to understand as well as introducing data minimisation is an obvious place to start to improve data rights. 

“There is a clear need for a focus on algorithms too, which are created and trained using children’s data. We need to make sure that these algorithms are not used to target and retarget young people with harmful content.

“Children’s hopes, dreams, and fears are among the data that is harvested by digital platforms. This data is used by algorithms to target them with advertising that can be so specific it makes them feel uncomfortable. The report is a clarion call to the government and the technology sector: what are we going to do about this now we see it in black-and-white?”

The polling was conducted by YouGov, on behalf of Reset Australia, surveyed 400 young people aged 16-17 across Australia. It was conducted via an online panel in May 2021.

Join more than 30,000 advertising industry experts
Get all the latest advertising and media news direct to your inbox from B&T.

No related posts.

TAGGED: Reset Australia
Share
Staff Writers
By Staff Writers
Follow:
Staff Writers represent B&T's team of award-winning reporters. Here, you'll find articles crafted with industry experience spanning over 50 years. Our team of specialists brings together a wealth of knowledge and a commitment to delivering insightful, topical, and breaking news. With a deep understanding of advertising and media, our Staff Writers are dedicated to providing industry-leading analysis and reporting, both shaping the conversation and setting the benchmark for excellence.

Latest News

Melissa Fein Unpacks Impostor Syndrome & Modern Career Challenges
14/07/2025
TV Ratings (13/07/2025): All Eyes On Japan As Travel Guides Welcome New Addition
14/07/2025
Former News Corp Execs Dale Foenander & Matt Paine Launch Lamington Digital
14/07/2025
Woolies Appoints Interim CMO As Andrew Hicks Makes The Move To M&S In The UK
14/07/2025
//

B&T is Australia’s leading news publication magazine for the advertising, marketing, media and PR industries.

 

B&T is owned by parent company The Misfits Media Company Pty Ltd.

About B&T

  • About
  • Contact
  • Editorial Guidelines
  • Privacy
  • Terms
  • Advertise

Top Categories

  • Advertising
  • Campaigns
  • Marketing
  • Media
  • Opinion
  • Technology
  • TV Ratings

Sign Up for Our Newsletter



B&TB&T
Follow US
© 2025 B&T. The Misfits Media Company Pty Ltd. All Rights Reserved.
Welcome Back!

Sign in to your account

Register Lost your password?