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Online Privacy & Security

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  • short reads

    What strategies do YOU use to protect your online identity?

    A new survey by the Pew Research Center’s Internet Project finds that 86% of internet users have taken steps online to remove or mask their digital footprints. We ask readers to share their own strategies and experiences.

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    Anonymity, Privacy, and Security Online

    86% of online adults have taken steps to avoid surveillance by other people or organizations when using the internet. Despite precautions, 21% have had an email or social media account hijacked and 11% have had vital information stolen.

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    Teens and Mobile Apps Privacy

    58% of American teens have downloaded an app to a cell phone or tablet. More than half of teen apps users have avoided an app due to concerns about sharing their personal information.

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    Where Teens Seek Online Privacy Advice

    Teens often rely on themselves and the guidance they get from the websites they use to figure out how to manage their privacy online, but when they do seek advice, they go primarily to peers and parents.

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    Government Surveillance: A Question Wording Experiment

    Overview In the wake of leaked information about the government’s telephone and digital surveillance programs last month, public opinion surveys reported a wide range of reactions. For example, a Pew Research Center/Washington Post survey conducted immediately after the revelations found broad support for the program, while a Gallup survey conducted just days later found more […]

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    Few See Adequate Limits on NSA Surveillance Program

    Overview A majority of Americans – 56% – say that federal courts fail to provide adequate limits on the telephone and internet data the government is collecting as part of its anti-terrorism efforts. An even larger percentage (70%) believes that the government uses this data for purposes other than investigating terrorism. And despite the insistence […]

  • short reads

    Young Americans and privacy: ’It’s complicated’

    Despite their “share everything” image, privacy still matters for young American adults. But they distinguish between information they voluntarily share on social-networking sites and systematic monitoring by government agencies of telephone and internet traffic. In response to revelations last week that the NSA is conducting such surveillance of Americans, government officials told Congress this week that […]