Uncovering privacy attitudes and practices in instant messaging

We present an analysis of privacy attitudes and practices in Instant Messaging based on responses to an online questionnaire. On a 7point Likert scale, the reported concern about IM privacy spanned the whole range, with the average being slightly below "medium". Respondents' justifications for privacy concerns revealed that the main contributing factors were: sensitivity of content, personal disposition towards privacy, understanding of technology, and potential persistence of conversations. Expectations for various categories of contacts differed significantly. Our findings indicate that it may be useful to leverage grouping functionality for privacy management. We also propose making the underlying technology more transparent. Categories and Subject Descriptors H.5.3 [Information Interfaces and Presentation (e.g., HCI)]: Group and Organization Interfaces – Collaborative computing, Computer-supported cooperative work. General Terms Design, Human Factors. Keywords Pri...

• Type: Conference
• Year: 2005
• Where: GROUP
• Authors: Sameer Patil, Alfred Kobsa
• Keywords: GROUP 2005, IM Privacy, Instant Messaging, Privacy