Discomfort is clear as increasingly personal data belongs to private entities such as Facebook and Google

Reach Insights Press Release

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11th February 2019

Discomfort is clear as increasingly personal data belongs to private entities such as Facebook and Google

64% believe it is wrong for companies to use personal data in targeted advertising

Only 16% of people are comfortable with how much of their personal data is possessed by Facebook and Google

93% want to see more education for young people about how their data is used online

In recent years companies like Facebook and Google have come under increased pressure to be more transparent about the ways in which they store and make use of data belonging to users of their services.

To understand more about how people in Ireland feel about how their data is used by major tech platforms, iReach has conducted a nationally representative survey of 1001 people. The results clearly demonstrate the apprehension felt about how personal information is stored and used.

Only 16% of respondents are comfortable with how much of their personal data is possessed by Facebook and Google, with 58% instead who are unhappy at this situation.

A rather substantial majority of 64% believe that it is wrong for companies to use personal data to target people with specific advertisements online. This figure is even higher with those aged over 55 years old, 75% of whom disagree with using data for this purpose.

Furthermore, 49% of those asked are not familiar with Facebook’s use of categories, which are created based on user data as well as interests and user engagement with content on the network. Overall 60% did not know that these categories existed and only one in four people feel comfortable that Facebook creates these lists.

93% of people would like to see more education for young people about how social media platforms and other companies use their data. Of this group, 73% believe that this education should take place in school, whereas 65% want greater restrictions on how companies like Facebook and Google are allowed to use information about their users.

About iReach Insights

iReach Insights provides a range of research and market intelligence services in Ireland and Europe. iReach has built a Consumer Decisions Research Panel of 40,000 members in Ireland, delivering robust research insights. The survey questions were included in the Nationally Representative iReach Consumer Decisions Omnibus run between the 24^th January and the 31st January and has a 3% Confidence Interval and 95% Confidence Level.

Questions asked of participants as follows:

Are you familiar with categories on Facebook?

Did you know that these categories existed?

How comfortable are you with Facebook creating lists of categories for individuals based on user data stored by the site?

To what extent would you agree with the following statements: It’s wrong for companies to use personal data to target people with specific advertisements online, I am comfortable with how much of my personal data is possessed by companies such as Facebook and Google.

Do you think that more should be done to educate young people about how social media platforms and other companies use their data?

Which of the following do you feel would be effective in doing so: More education in school focused on how personal data is used online; A greater effort from major social networks and tech companies to be more transparent about what they use personal data for; A government initiative on online safety aimed at young people; Greater restrictions on how companies such as Facebook and Google are allowed to use information about their users; Influencers or celebrities encouraging young people to take their online safety more seriously. 

iReach Insights Limited – Temple Hall, Temple Road, Blackrock, CO. Dublin, IRELAND.

iReach Managing Director: Oisin Byrne
T: 01-214 3740 or email: PR@ireachhq.com