Design of Privacy Protection Method from the Perspective of Personal Informa-tion Protection Law:Privacy Notification and Its Influence on Privacy Uncertainty
Mobile applications(Apps)are an important force in the development of digital economy.Strengthening personal information protection of Apps is crucial to the social stability and high-quality development of digital economy.However,the information asymmetry in the App market has brought a lot of uncertainty to users.Users are uncertain about whether App service providers will properly manage and protect their personal information,and users'uncertainty regarding personal information collection,use,and protection(referred to as"privacy uncertainty")would hinder them to download and use Apps.The Personal Information Protection Law of the People's Republic of China was implemented in November,2021,which stipulates that service providers inform users on privacy related information needed.App service providers hide the privacy related information in lengthy and rarely read privacy policies by updating their privacy policies.Thus,users'privacy uncertainty cannot be effectively alleviated.This study aims to alleviate App users'privacy uncertainty by conducting research on privacy protection method design based on the Personal Information Protection Law.Specifically,this study summarizes the privacy related information included in the Personal Information Protection Law that App service providers are required to inform users,understands users'preferences for such privacy related information,proposes and designs a privacy protection method,i.e.privacy notification to effectively inform users the privacy related information in a concise and salient form in the App download page.And then three studies were conducted through experimental vignette methodology to systematically investigate App users'perceived privacy uncertainty in App download stage,and the effect of privacy notification on users'privacy uncertainty and their willingness to download Apps.Participants were recruited on the"Credamo"platform,and 566 valid data were obtained.The authors analyzed the data using partial least squares method,multiple group analysis and so on.The study finds that in the Chinese App market,users generally have a high level of privacy uncertainty,and their privacy uncertainty are context-dependent,that is,in a mobile application environment referring to personal information with a higher sensitivity level,users perceive a higher level of privacy uncertainty.Users believe that all the privacy related information required to be notified to users under the Personal Information Protection Law is important,and the importance does not vary with different contexts.Privacy notification not only significantly reduces users'privacy uncertainty during the App download stage but also reduces the negative impact of privacy uncertainty on App download intentions,alleviating App service providers'conflicts between user data collection/usage and privacy protection.Meanwhile,presenting privacy related information to users in a salient manner can enhance their awareness of personal information privacy protection,and promote the improvement of their digital literacy and skills.6 figs.8 tabs.44 refs.
Personal information protectionPrivacy uncertaintyPrivacy notificationPrivacy protection
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