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Feeling anxious about online safety? A new survey from HR tech platform Checkr indicates it’s a common malady.
Nearly three-quarters of Americans report they’re “extremely or moderately concerned about the safety and privacy of their online data.” Among the groups surveyed, Gen Xers and millennials—roughly 28- to 59-year-olds—were the most likely to express alarm.
With massive data breaches like the recently reported AT&T metadata leak, workplace policies that closely monitor employees’ online activities, and companies that widely collect and commercialize our data, it’s not hard to see why.
In its poll of 3,000 employed Americans spanning four generations, Checkr found that apprehension about workplace monitoring and privacy were particularly pervasive. According to the survey results, 84% of respondents expressed “a level of concern about the safety and privacy of the data they provide online in the workplace.”
More than half the respondents said their employer was indeed tracking their online activity at work, and a majority of that group either agreed that it was a violation of privacy or said they were undecided on the issue.
When asked whether they’d take a pay cut to ensure online privacy at work, Gen Z respondents were most adamant, with 54% of these 18- to 27-year-olds saying they’d do so if they could.
Dating apps are another area of broad concern for Americans; less than a third of respondents said they felt “truly safe” using them. Overall, almost 70% said they felt safer meeting potential partners organically, and nearly 40% of both Gen Z and millennial participants reported having “unsafe experiences with dating apps or online dating services.”
When asked whether respondents would feel more comfortable using these services with background check or screening policies in place—a service Checkr provides—69% agreed they would.