Consumers worry their data is being held by brands they don't know
The average person's data is held by 350 brands and they probably don't remember 83 percent of them according to a new study.
The research from identity management platform Mine also finds 32 percent of data in people's 'digital footprint' didn’t even require users to open an account to store their information.
Only 17 percent of an average person's digital footprint contains digital services that they frequently use, with the top five being Microsoft, YouTube, Netflix, PayPal, and Spotify.
Many people seem to have lost faith in data privacy with 92 percent of respondents saying they feel uncomfortable about the number of companies that collect data about them and 86 percent seeing giving away data as impairing their right for privacy and/or their right for free choice. 88 percent believe that giving up one's privacy is the price paid for using the internet and that there are no other options.
Mine empowers people to take their data back from online services by automating a 'right-to-be-forgotten' request which companies need to comply with in 30 days under the EU's General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR). Since launching, it has revealed the companies receiving the most requests were those in the technology, shopping and travel sectors. It's still early days since the GDPR was brought in, but since Mine launched a month ago, 37 percent of companies have completed requests and 26 percent are currently in conversation with users, showcasing that while processes still need to be ironed out, organizations are taking the GDPR seriously.
Gal Ringel, co-founder and CEO of Mine, says, "The fact so many people have used Mine to reclaim their data in our first month confirms our belief that instead of talking about data privacy we need to shift our mindsets to strive for data ownership. Any form of online experience isn’t possible without sharing our data so trying to cloak our online presence isn’t a solution, it's only avoiding the problem."
You can find out more about what you can do to take ownership of your data on the Mine site.
Image credit: kenary820 / Shutterstock