Clearer privacy policies can improve online sales

Thursday, 19 February 2009 09:42

Two-thirds of people surveyed by the UK privacy watchdog want marketing opt-outs to be clearer, while 62% want a clearer explanation of how personal information will actually be used. The survey found that 71% did not read or understand privacy policies.

Many consumers feel that online companies deliberately made it difficult to read or understand their privacy policies. 42 percent of the people surveyed actually felt that the policies simply existed to justify the selling of personal details.

According to an ICO officer, Richard Thomas, "Privacy notices are an important way to inform individuals and ensure that organisations are open about how they use personal information. But no-one should need a magnifying glass or a lawyer to find out what will happen to their information, what their choices are and what their rights are. Too many privacy notices are written to protect organisations, rather than to inform consumers."