Examining Personal Information Privacy-Protective Responses (IPPR) with the Use of Smart Devices

Increasingly, smart devices (such as smart phone, iPod/mp3, or tablet) have become an essential part of daily life and work of individuals. Various applications are being developed and made available to the users based on their needs. However, many applications when downloaded and installed on a phone are used as a medium for tracking users’ personal data and behavior by companies. This research in progress examines whether users are aware of the privacy issues associated with their download and use of smart devices’ apps and how that knowledge would influence their future privacy preserving behavior. The study was conducted by surveying smart device users and analyzing their responses across three categories as antecedents of users’ privacy-protective responses: whether the users are concerned about privacy and big data gathered while they are downloading an application, subjective norms, and perceived usefulness.