Nov. 26–A growing landscape of smartphones and tablets have granted more Americans access to the World Wide Web than ever before. Unfortunately, less than a quarter of those citizens understand what that actually means.
Only 23 percent of participants in the Pew Research Center’s Web IQ quiz said there was a difference between the Internet — the architecture that allows computers to communicate from machine to machine — and the World Wide Web — an application that uses the Internet to facilitate that communication.
The quiz, which was conducted through an online survey of 1,066 Internet users across the country and released Tuesday, also showed nearly 40 percent of respondents either gave incorrect answers or skipped questions surrounding the definition of net neutrality, which was described in the survey as “equal treatment of digital content.”
Participants fared slightly worse when it came to answering questions about website privacy policies. Fifty-two percent of respondents incorrectly answered that a website’s privacy policy means companies do not share users’ personal information while another 3 percent ignored the question altogether.
The study is part of Pew’s ongoing series acknowledging the 25th anniversary of the World Wide Web, but its findings could be valuable to stakeholders plotting future uses for the technology.
“Policymakers, tech designers and those orienting their organizations around digital life can profit from knowing just how ‘technology literate’ people are and where gaps in their knowledge might be,” said study author and senior Pew researcher Aaron Smith in a press release.
“Just because people use these gadgets a lot doesn’t necessarily mean they know everything about how they work and where they came from.
The survey wasn’t a total wash for participants.
Eighty-three percent were able to identify Microsoft founder Bill Gates from a photo. Facebook COO and bestselling author of “Lean In — Women Work and the Will to Lead” Sheryl Sandberg, not so much. Only 21 percent could identify her from a photo.
Eighty-two percent connected the concept of hashtags to Twitter; 74 percent knew megabytes are larger than kilobytes; and 66 percent knew that a “wiki” is an online collaboration tool.
Higher quiz scores were also tied to age: participants ages 18 to 29 had an average of 10.1 correct answers out of 17 questions, 30 to 49 year olds averaged 9.6 correct answers, 50- to 64-year olds had an average of 8.9, and those 65 and older averaged 7.8 correct.
When it came to answering questions surrounding privacy policies, 46 percent of those 18 to 29 years old answered correctly, compared to 49 percent of participants older than 65.
The reported lack of knowledge surrounding privacy rights on websites is downright “scary,” according to University of Pittsburgh business professor Andrew Stephen.
“If people don’t understand different privacy policies on different sites, they don’t realize they can be vastly different. It’s hard for people to make informed decisions about how to use those sites,” he said.
Mr. Stephen said he believes far more people are aware of privacy policies and other concerns surrounding Internet use than they were in years past.
However, with the study showing nearly a 50/?50 split between those in the know and those in the dark, he said awareness hasn’t reached a point that will help anyone further a particular cause.
“Increased awareness and consciousness doesn’t necessarily translate into more people being educated,” he said.
“People talking about or writing about privacy on Facebook versus people [on Facebook] saying I understand privacy, I know the implications and I know what to do about it are two different things.”
For more information visit: http://?www.pewinternet.org/?2014/?11/?25/?web-iq/
Deborah M. Todd: dtodd@post-gazette.com or 412-263-1652. Twitter: @deborahtodd.
Report: Privacy policies still stump Americans [Pittsburgh Post-Gazette :: ] – Businessweek
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