Consumers already lay the responsibility for protecting their data predominantly at their own door

Bielefeld, 23 January 2013 – The majority of Germans (70 percent) see themselves as being responsible for protecting their personal data. Only 17 percent are of the opinion that there should be legislation to protect their personal data. After that come the providers that request the information (seven percent), data protection agencies (three percent) and consumer protection agencies (two percent).

These are the findings of a current TNS Emnid Medien- und Sozialforschung survey conducted on a representative sample of the population and commissioned by the PAYBACK loyalty programme to mark International Data Protection Day (28 January). According to the results of the study, consumers' greatest concerns lie in disclosing personal details for competitions (82 percent) and on social networking sites (78 percent). More trust is put in health and other insurers and banks.

On the other hand, there is great reluctance among German citizens to disclose bank details – 83 percent of respondents had concerns about this. Personal photos were also seen as critical (77 percent), even coming in ahead of medical records or personal medical history (73 percent). First and last names, date of birth and purchasing history, on the other hand, are considered less sensitive.

 
When it comes to their personal data, over half of respondents do not (yet) feel comfortable in the digital or mobile world. Almost 60 percent of respondents said that, as far as data protection was concerned, they felt safest in the “offline world”. Respondents are still sceptical about sending and receiving data by mobile or smartphone. Only five percent had a good feeling about it.

About the TNS Emnid survey:
The telephone survey was carried out by TNS Emnid Medien- und Sozialforschung GmbH in December 2012. A total of 1,004 people over the age of 16 were questioned as part of the survey. The survey is available for download at www.tns-emnid.com (german only) and www.payback.net.

TNS Emnid
TNS Emnid Medien- und Sozialforschung GmbH was established over 60 years ago and is thus among the longest-standing providers of market and social research. TNS Emnid is a competent partner for customers from the areas of media, political and social research with national and international research projects. It uses cutting-edge, high-quality survey procedures and market and social research instruments to generate up-to-date and exclusive marketing information. The company employs a full range of methods, from face-to-face and telephone interviews to online surveys. TNS Emnid Medien- und Sozialforschung GmbH is a subsidiary of TNS Infratest Holding GmbH & Co. KG. and is a member of the TNS Group (Taylor Nelson Sofres, London). This makes it part of one of the leading global market research and consulting companies. For further information, please go to: www.tns-emnid.com

About Kantar
Kantar is one of the leading market research and consulting networks in the world. Using the combined expertise and comptence of its 13 specialist companies, Kantar is pursuing the goal of being the premium provider of strategic knowedge and inspiring insights for national and international customers. More than 28,000 employees in around 100 countries work on the full range of research and consulting disciplines and are therefore able to provide their customers with information at every stage of the consumer cycle that will give a decisive competitive edge. More than half of the companies in the Fortune Top 500 are Kantar customers. Further information is available at www.kantar.com.

Contact details and further information

TNS Emnid
Jörg Erren
Stieghorster Strasse 90
33605 Bielefeld
Germany
Tel.: +49 521-9257 642
joerg.erren@tns-emnid.com
www.tns-emnid.com