Study of data from start of pandemic examined changes in privacy and data choices

A crisis can alter one’s personal considerations of the benefits and costs related to choices around data and privacy. In a new study, researchers used location data before and after the start of the COVID-19 pandemic to determine how U.S. consumers reacted. They found that decisions to opt out of privacy declined and conclude that societal considerations might have influenced consumers’ choices; ideology and demographics also played a role.