The Privacy Commissioner says public concern remains high, including unease about social media use. Photo: RNZ Pacific/ Koroi Hawkins
Public concern about privacy remains high, with particular unease around children's privacy, social media use and organisations using artificial intelligence in their decision-making, says the Privacy Commissioner.
An annual survey of New Zealanders released on Thursday found more people were worried about the impact of technology on their privacy and were questioning what their personal information is being used for and why.
Privacy Commissioner Michael Webster said nearly half of respondents had become more concerned about issues of privacy in the past few years.
"We saw that two-thirds of respondents, which is getting really high, say protecting personal information is a major concern in their lives. And over 80 percent of respondents said that they wanted more control and choice over the collection of their personal information."
He said 67 percent of respondents were concerned about the privacy of children, including when using social media, 63 percent were concerned about the management of personal information by social media companies, and 62 percent were concerned about government agencies and businesses using AI in decision-making.
New Zealanders wanted more information about how their personal information was being used and what it meant for them, Webster added. "It's those kind of technology, digital innovation questions, that are top of mind for New Zealanders."
"New Zealanders are great adopters of technology, but this survey suggests that we're increasing becoming aware there's also a price to pay through the loss of control over our personal information and we're increasing worried about the implications of that."
The concept of data minimisation - collecting only what was needed - was as important as data protection, he said.
"If an agency or organisation doesn't ask for your information or reduces the amount they ask for, there's less that can be stolen, if it's not there it can't be stolen, of course, by cyber criminals. People are asking questions about why do you need to collect all that information about me? Please only collect the absolute minimum that you need."
People were also becoming more proactive when it came to taking action if they thought their right to privacy was not being protected and respected. "Two-thirds of respondents said they would consider changing service providers - such as businesses - due to poor privacy practices."
However Webster said what people might actually do, could be a different story. "It is a worldwide trend ... but it's the more digitally savvy people, the 25-35 age group who are more likely to switch [and] not just think about it."
This year's Privacy Week (12-16 May) theme was 'Privacy on Purpose', or "the need for organisations to be more purposeful and intentional about doing privacy well", said Webster.
The Office of the Privacy Commissioner had held 21 online webinars across five days, and the numbers of people signing up had been "off the charts".
"Around 400 to 500 people have been signing up to each webinar, so literally thousands of people taking part in Privacy Week."
Last year nearly 3700 people viewed the webinars and this year there had been around 6000. He said webinars covering AI and privacy were the "hot topic", reflecting people's current concerns.
The webinars are available for viewing on the Office of the Privacy Commissioner website.
Sign up for Ngā Pitopito Kōrero, a daily newsletter curated by our editors and delivered straight to your inbox every weekday.
