The Scope and Depth of Privacy Statements on Business-to-Consumer Web Sites

Online privacy statements are capable of dispelling users' fears of data misuse and enhance their trust in Web sites, if their message is communicated effectively. This work-in-progress study examines the textual and hypertextual peculiarities of online privacy statements of 30 well-known commercial Web sites. More specifically, it focuses on the content, the attitudes conveyed, and the hypertextual organization of these privacy statements. It turns out that the privacy statements largely fail to accommodate users' information needs and are lengthy, poorly drafted and often ambiguously worded documents. KEYWORDS E-Commerce, privacy statements, consumer trust, linguistic analysis.

• Type: Conference
• Year: 2003
• Where: IADIS
• Authors: Irene Pollach
• Keywords: IADIS 2003, IADIS 2008, Online Privacy Statements, Privacy Statements, Web Sites