Tuesday, December 18, 2007
Sixty percent say they are not worried about personal
information being on the Web.
SAN FRANCISCO CHRONICLE
SAN FRANCISCO — About half of the online adult population has looked up themselves or someone else online, according to a new survey.
A good 36 percent said they have searched the Web for someone with whom they’ve lost touch, and 9 percent have dug up information on someone they were dating.
At the same time, 60 percent said they are not worried about how much information about them is on the Internet.
The findings, published by the Pew Internet & American Life Project on Sunday, reflect how people are sharing more and more of their lives on the Internet, as well as how Web 2.0 sites such as YouTube, Flickr, Facebook and MySpace are encouraging users to post their home videos, photographs and personal profiles online, including data ranging from their favorite movies to their cell phone numbers.
The increasing amount of personal information online has drawn concern among privacy advocates, who worry about how it could be used and who controls it. Most recently, they decried a new Facebook advertising program that broadcasted its users’ online purchases and other online actions to their friends and network. In response, Facebook CEO Mark Zuckerberg apologized and gave users the ability to permanently shut off the program.
But the Pew report suggested that most Internet users are not concerned about their personal information online. The study found that 61 percent have not felt compelled to limit it, while 38 percent have taken steps to control it.
Among adults who have a visible social-networking profile, 60 percent said that anyone who happens upon it can see it, and 38 percent said they restrict access to their friends, the report said.
“People aren’t being super cautious about what they’re doing or presenting online,” said Mary Madden, co-author of the report and a senior research specialist with Pew.
The report also found that 47 percent of Internet users have searched for themselves online, up from 22 percent in 2002. And 53 percent, mostly those under the age of 50, have looked up an acquaintance on the Web.
Women were slightly more likely than men to have researched someone they were dating or someone they were about to meet. More men than women, on the other hand, said they have looked up friends, someone from their past or a colleague or competitor.
In light of recent recommendations that job hunters not post photographs or personal information that could hurt their chances with employers, 11 percent said they have searched online for someone they were about to hire or work with.