Only 33 percent of respondents are confident that current media reporting is accurate. Seventy-three percent of respondents said government regulation of privacy is important. Not surprisingly, respondents are concerned about the security of their information on the Internet. Respondents learn about privacy through the media. However, a large percentage of respondents said that media coverage of privacy issues is deficient.
Respondents are skeptical of privacy policies and third-party certifications.
Eighty-eight percent of respondents said they re aware of a privacy policy on the sites they visit most frequently. However, when asked about the level of trust of a Web site that contains a privacy policy, only 6 percent said they completely trust a Web site with a privacy policy. So, while a privacy policy may be noticed, it is not completely trusted. Overall, the level of consumer trust is low across the board for each of these privacy protection methods. For Internet companies, this means that third-party certifications alone will not earn trust.