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.
Most respondents understand cookie technology.
Sixty-one percent said they re knowledgeable about electronic cookies. This knowledge of cookie technology is also seen as many of these respondents are monitoring or controlling their cookie activity. And 61 percent of respondents said cookies are acceptable. Only 16 percent said cookies are not acceptable. Most consumers recognize value in cookie technology but want to maintain control.