Security News > 2021 > July > User data privacy decisions can be easily manipulated

New research from Copenhagen Business School finds designers of cookie banners can affect users' privacy choices by manipulating the choice architecture and with simple changes can increase absolute consent by 17%. A website cookie banner is the consent management tool that allows users to give their consent to process their personal data.

The research findings provide empirical evidence that shows people's data privacy decisions can be easily manipulated.

"Detailed user data has become valuable as it allows to better understand customer behaviour and improve the targeting of advertisements. Users and customers deserve and should demand a choice environment that allows their own need satisfaction and not one that benefits the website owner," adds Bauer.

The research highlights that the ability of website owners to manipulate the outcome of user privacy decisions is at odds with the ideals of the ePrivacy Directive and GDPR. Privacy manipulation.

The researchers analysed how their manipulations affected 1493 user interactions with the cookie banner and the resulting privacy choice, i.e., whether to give or decline consent.

"One helpful approach can be to treat aggressive prompts and design element that favour a specific choice outcome as a warning sign to pause and reflect: do I really want to share my data? An issue not limited to data privacy as many websites and online shops gear up with dark patterns in the fight for user attention and to increase sales," concludes Bauer.

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