Digital natives aren't concerned much about privacy, or are they?

Area of Science:

• Human-Computer Interaction
• Digital Privacy
• Consumer Behavior

Background:

• Voice assistants are increasingly integrated into private life, collecting substantial personal data.
• This integration raises significant privacy concerns among users.
• Understanding user attitudes and behaviors regarding data privacy is crucial.

Purpose of the Study:

• To investigate digital natives' attitudes towards privacy with voice assistants.
• To examine their actual and intended behaviors in privacy-sensitive contexts.
• To gather user recommendations for data protection.

Main Methods:

• A mixed-method study was conducted.
• Involved 65 participants identified as 'digital natives'.
• Assessed privacy attitudes, behaviors, and policy recommendations.

Main Results:

• Most participants express privacy concerns but will share data if benefits are perceived.
• A prevalent sentiment includes uncertainty about data usage, powerlessness, mistrust in tech companies, and lack of transparency.
• Few actively manage privacy, relying instead on governmental regulation, despite limited awareness of existing laws like GDPR and the Digital Services Act.

Conclusions:

• Digital natives exhibit a complex privacy calculus, balancing risks and benefits.
• There is a significant gap in user awareness of data protection regulations.
• A strong reliance on external regulation for privacy management is evident, alongside a desire to limit pervasive digitalization.