# Protection of Personal Data in the Context of E-Commerce
## 6 Research Objectives and Methodology
### Results Analysis
#### 6.3.2 Data Security and Privacy Awareness  
Additionally, the survey explored respondents' understanding of personal data protection. This included assessing their knowledge of what constitutes personal data, aiming to gauge their awareness and comprehension of data privacy issues. An analysis of survey responses revealed exciting insights into what respondents consider personal data. As shown in Table 2, a significant misconception was observed; 66% of respondents incorrectly identified the registration number of a legal entity as personal data, and 58% made the same error with the financial data of legal entities. Additionally, it is particularly noteworthy that 40% of respondents do not recognize students' school grades as personal data. These findings highlight gaps in understanding what constitutes personal data among the public. \begin{table}
\begin{tabular}{c c} \hline \hline
**Personal Data** & **Yes** \\ \hline First and last name & 86\% \\ Physical address & 89\% \\ E-mail address & 72\% \\ Citizen identification number & 91\% \\ \hline Company identification number & 66\% \\ Bank account & 63\% \\ IP address & 78\% \\ Company financial data & 58\% \\ Student grades & 60\% \\ Personal ID number & 87\% \\ \hline \hline \end{tabular}
\end{table} 
Table 2: Personal data perception. The research reveals significant concerns among respondents regarding their online data security. The majority, 58%, identify the unauthorized sharing of their data as the primary threat. Cybercriminals are considered a potential threat by 49% of the respondents, followed by the threat of employee data theft at 40%. Accidental data loss is noted by 34%, while 29% are concerned about misuse of personal data by another country, and 25% are concerned about data breaches related to terrorist activities. Regarding computer protection, 78% of respondents report installing antivirus systems on their PCs, highlighting a prevalent adherence to basic cybersecurity measures. Despite this, only 26% of respondents feel secure about their data online, with a scant 7% feeling extremely secure, indicating widespread unease about online data safety. A substantial 74% of participants strongly agree on the importance of Internet security, with an additional 16% generally agreeing. Only a tiny fraction (5%) disagree, and 2% view online security as unimportant. When asked about experiences with online fraud, 64% have not encountered fraud, whereas 37% have faced some inconveniences while shopping online. Negative online shopping experiences have led to significant behavioral changes among consumers. Of those affected by such experiences, 14% temporarily ceased online purchases, and 7% stopped altogether. Conversely, 52% now purchase only from verified retailers post-experience, demonstrating a cautious approach to online shopping, while 28% report no change in their shopping behavior. According to guidelines from the European Commission, safe online purchasing practices include verifying that a website uses the \"https://\" protocol and displays a locked padlock icon, indicating secure data transmission. Websites labeled with \"http://\" or displaying an unlocked red padlock or exclamation mark are deemed insecure for transmitting personal information. Survey results show that a significant percentage of respondents, 63%, adhere to these security guidelines when shopping online. However, 39% of the participants do not consistently observe these safety measures during online transactions. This indicates a gap between awareness and practical security measures among Internet users. Regarding cookie consent, 40% of respondents admit never reading the terms of use for cookies before consenting. Meanwhile, 42% have read these terms at least once but do not revisit the documents, simply accepting the cookies subsequently. A more cautious 20% always review the cookie terms each time they visit a new site.