Microsoft's Internet Survey shows consumers from developed and developing countries share the same concern about the booming personal technology industry: it's great for the economy but it's bad for privacy.
The survey "Views from Around the Globe: 2nd Annual Poll on How Personal Technology is Changing Our Lives" has been released by Microsoft for the World Economic Forum in Davos, Switzerland.
Gathering the views of more than 12,000 Internet users from the United States, China, India, Brazil, Indonesia, South Africa, South Korea, Russia, Germany, Turkey, Japan and France over a period of 12 months, the survey aims to assess the impact of personal technology on individual lifestyles.
Despite differences in the outlook of users from developed and developing countries, majority of respondents in all countries, with the exception of India and Indonesia, agree that there is inadequate legal protection of citizens' online privacy.
Only respondents from India and Indonesia say they feel fully aware of the type of information gathered about them.
Most respondents also say that the legal rights of Internet users should be governed by their home country and that foreign governments who wish to obtain online data stored in a data center about a citizen should seek permission directly from the person, not just the government. They also agree that law enforcement officers must produce a warrant that authorizes them to search through a user's technological devices and that personal information stored in the cloud must have the same privacy protections that physical documents have.
"It's a note of caution to everyone in both technology and government," said Mark Penn, chief strategy officer and executive vice president at Microsoft. "Ignoring citizens' privacy anywhere can cause peril everywhere."
Despite the growing concerns about privacy -- the issue jumped five points in importance -- most consumers are still enthusiastic of the positive impact of technology on the economy. Respondents from developed and developing nations agree that the Internet gives them the ability to find cheaper products, allows businesses to innovate, encourages others to start their own businesses and increases productivity.
The respondents in all countries also believe that social media has a positive impact on social activism, although concerns that it could have a negative effect have risen in developed countries such as the U.S., France and Germany.
Meanwhile, respondents in developing nations continue to approve of technology's role in freeing up political expression, although the optimism has slightly cooled down this year, down from six points last year.
Other issues showing the divide between the developed and developing world have to do with the role of technology going forward. For instance, only 36 percent of respondents from developed countries think technology has a positive impact on keeping them connected with friends and family, while 60 percent in developing countries think the same thing.
In developing countries, 77 percent of parents want their children to have more access to technology, while 56 percent of parents in developed nations say they want children to have less access.
In terms of getting fit, 57 percent of respondents from developing countries say the apps that allow them to count calories and exercise more have helped them become more fit. In contrast, 62 percent in developed nations say technology has caused them to become less fit because of the amount of time they spend with their gadgets.
Finally, 85 percent of respondents in developing countries say they are interested in careers in STEM (science, technology, engineering, and mathematics), compared to less than six out of 10 respondents in developed countries. Furthermore, 77 percent of women in developing countries feel encouraged to work in the mostly male-dominated field, while less than half, or 46 percent, of women in developed nations do.
"The schism is significant because developing countries, with their nearly unbounded enthusiasm for personal technology, represent about a six-fold greater population overall and about a two-fold greater online population," said Penn. "And almost all future growth is expected in developing nations."
"Meanwhile, developed nations, with their growing concerns about technology, are encouraging technology companies to make products that don't just work but work for them -- delivering productivity and efficiency but also protecting the standards and values they love."
