Privacy: is there an app for that? (original) (raw)
Related papers
Proceedings of the Seventh Symposium on Usable Privacy and Security - SOUPS '11, 2011
Users of social networking sites (SNSs) increasingly must learn to negotiate privacy online with multiple service providers. Facebook's third-party applications (apps) add an additional layer of complexity and confusion for users seeking to understand and manage their privacy. We conducted a novel exploratory survey (conducted on Facebook as a Platform app) to measure how Facebook app users interact with apps, what they understand about how apps access and exchange their profile information, and how these factors relate to their privacy concerns. In our analysis, we paid special attention to our most knowledgeable respondents: given their expertise, would they differ in behaviors or attitudes from less knowledgeable respondents? We found that misunderstandings and confusion abound about how apps function and how they manage profile data. Against our expectations, knowledge or behavior weren't consistent predictors of privacy concerns with third-party apps or on SNSs in general. Instead, whether or not the respondent experienced an adverse privacy event on a social networking site was a reliable predictor of privacy attitudes.
2016
Abstract: Users share vast amounts of personal information online, but are they fully aware of what information they are sharing and with whom? In this paper, we focused on Facebook apps and set out to understand how concerned users are about privacy and how well-informed they are about what personal data apps can access. We found that initially, subjects were generally under-informed about what data apps could access from their profiles. After viewing additional information about these permissions, subjects ’ concern about privacy on Facebook increased. Subjects ’ understanding of what data apps were able to access increased, although even after receiving explicit information on the topic, many subjects still did not fully understand the extent to which apps could access their data.
Analyzing Facebook Privacy Settings: User Expectations vs. Reality
The sharing of personal data has emerged as a popular activity over online social networking sites like Facebook. As a result, the issue of online social network privacy has received significant attention in both the research literature and the mainstream media. Our overarching goal is to improve defaults and provide better tools for managing privacy, but we are limited by the fact that the full extent of the privacy problem remains unknown; there is little quantification of the incidence of incorrect privacy settings or the difficulty users face when managing their privacy.
The effects of general privacy concerns and transactional privacy concerns on Facebook apps usage
Information & Management, 2016
This study elucidates the role of control in the context of information privacy to develop a better understanding of the interactions between general privacy concerns and transactional privacy concerns. We posit that general privacy concerns moderate the effects of information collection and profile control on transactional privacy concerns, which in turn, influence willingness to delegate profile to Facebook App. We test the research model in the context of Facebook app installation. Results support our propositions. Theoretical contributions and practical implications for service providers and users are discussed.
In this study, young adults’ privacy concerns and their awareness of privacy implications were examined. Moreover two important factors were examined to understand their awareness of privacy implications. These factors are Facebook usage and news media consumption. Finally, the way users’ awareness of privacy implications affects those individuals’ usage of Facebook was examined. A total of 2,000 students were invited to participate in this survey. The survey was conducted February 12 to February 26, 2012. A total of 373 college students participated in this study. The results show that young adults’ Facebook usage and media consumption are positively associated with awareness of privacy implications. In addition, users who consume news media often are more likely to be aware of privacy implications than users who consume it rarely. Moreover, the results show that awareness of privacy implications is linked to stricter profile specifications. Furthermore, the results found that awareness of Facebook privacy implications may lead individuals to consider quitting Facebook.
FACEBOOK PRIVACY MANAGEMENT: AN EMPIRICAL STUDY OF AWARENESS, PERCEPTION AND FEARS
Is Facebook safe and secure? In several cases, it has been evident that users hardly ever give safety a thought before feeding the social network with sensitive and personal information. That’s exactly why such a question rather rattles an average active user that pays little or no heed to the security concerns revolving the online network. As Facebook becomes increasingly popular in India, as in the other parts of the world, a demand for a scientific investigation has risen. Are users aware of the safety risks that Facebook poses? Are they aware of the privacy settings on the site? If yes, how efficiently they manage privacy? Are they proactive when it comes to privacy management on the social network? To find answers to these critical questions, the researchers adopted a scientific survey method covering parts of North and South India. As many as 406 active Facebook users were chosen for the investigation. While a major chunk of them were unaware of the privacy settings, even part of those who were aware were poor at privacy management on Facebook. Another important revelation of the study was that most users’ personal data were open to the public, while they were of the belief that their data weren’t. And, a majority of the users weren’t aware of the privacy concerns associated with the popular social networking website.
The unauthorized use of personal information belonging to users of apps integrated with the Facebook platform affects millions of users. Crucially, although privacy concerns and awareness have increased, the use of these apps, and related privacy behaviors, remain largely unchanged. Given that such privacy behaviors are likely influenced by individuals' personality traits, it is imperative to better understand which personality traits make individuals more vulnerable to such unauthorized uses. We build on a recontextualized version of the theory of planned behavior (TPB) to evaluate the influence of the Big Five personality traits on attitudes toward Facebook privacy settings, social norms, and information privacy concerns (IPCs)-all within the context of Facebook app use. To evaluate this study's model, we analyzed 576 survey responses by way of partial least squares path modeling. Results indicate that highly extraverted individuals are particularly vulnerable to privacy violations (e.g., unauthorized use of personal information) because of their negative attitudes toward Facebook privacy settings. Our post hoc analysis uncovered interesting combinations of personality traits that make individuals particularly vulnerable to the unauthorized use of app-based information. In particular, the combination of extraversion and conscientiousness had a negative effect on individuals' attitude toward privacy settings. We also found a significant negative relationship between IPCs and intention to use Facebook apps. Finally, we found a positive relationship between social norms and intentions. Taken together, these results infer that individuals are likely to be influenced by their peers in the use of Facebook apps but that their intentions to use these apps declines as privacy concerns increase. Schyff). 1 In the context of this study, the term Facebook apps refers to both Facebook-authored apps (e.g., WhatsApp) and third-party apps that allow the use of Facebook credentials (e.g., Spotify and Pinterest). In other words, those apps that are integrated with the Facebook platform.
Collateral Damage of Facebook Apps: Friends Providers and Privacy Interdependence
Third-party apps enable a personalized experience on social networking platforms; however, they give rise to privacy interdependence issues. Apps installed by a user's friends can collect and potentially misuse her personal data inflicting collateral damage on the user while leaving her without proper means of control. In this paper, we present a multi-faceted study on the collateral information collection of apps in social networks. We conduct a user survey and show that Facebook users are concerned about this issue and the lack of mechanisms to control it. Based on real data, we compute the likelihood of collateral information collection affecting users; we show that the probability is significant and depends on both the friendship network and the popularity of the app. We also show its significance by computing the proportion of exposed user attributes including the case of profiling, when several apps are offered by the same provider. Finally, we propose a privacy dashboard concept enabling users to control the collateral damage.
This explorative study aims to gain insight about which privacy settings and features on Facebook interfaces are commonly used by Facebook users, and how perceived benefits and privacy risks for personal information disclosure on Facebook influences privacy strategies used on the site. Online survey was used to gather user data. Analysis of the survey data revealed the privacy strategies on Facebook were most commonly used for managing profile visibility, networking boundaries, and privacy awareness. Using a point-biserial correlation analysis, the results demonstrated significant relations between the types of privacy strategies used on Facebook and the types of perceived benefits experienced from using Facebook. Significant relations were also observed between the types of privacy strategies and the types of concerns for privacy risks on Facebook. Hence, when the goal of Facebook is to empower users for protecting their privacy, it is important to understand how users make disclosure decisions with the help of these privacy settings and features on user interfaces. This paper concludes with remarks on the importance of understanding users' attitudes in educating them about privacy protection in social applications.
The unauthorized use of personal information belonging to users of apps integrated with the Facebook platform affects millions of users. Crucially, although privacy concerns and awareness have increased, the use of these apps, and related privacy behaviors, remain largely unchanged. Given that such privacy behaviors are likely influenced by individuals' personality traits, it is imperative to better understand which personality traits make individuals more vulnerable to such unauthorized uses. We build on a recontextualized version of the theory of planned behavior (TPB) to evaluate the influence of the Big Five personality traits on attitudes toward Facebook privacy settings, social norms, and information privacy concerns (IPCs)-all within the context of Facebook app use. To evaluate this study's model, we analyzed 576 survey responses by way of partial least squares path modeling. Results indicate that highly extraverted individuals are particularly vulnerable to privacy violations (e.g., unauthorized use of personal information) because of their negative attitudes toward Facebook privacy settings. Our post hoc analysis uncovered interesting combinations of personality traits that make individuals particularly vulnerable to the unauthorized use of app-based information. In particular, the combination of extraversion and conscientiousness had a negative effect on individuals' attitude toward privacy settings. We also found a significant negative relationship between IPCs and intention to use Facebook apps. Finally, we found a positive relationship between social norms and intentions. Taken together, these results infer that individuals are likely to be influenced by their peers in the use of Facebook apps but that their intentions to use these apps declines as privacy concerns increase. Schyff). 1 In the context of this study, the term Facebook apps refers to both Facebook-authored apps (e.g., WhatsApp) and third-party apps that allow the use of Facebook credentials (e.g., Spotify and Pinterest). In other words, those apps that are integrated with the Facebook platform.