Almost 80 percent of people are concerned of privacy issues when it comes to wearable devices and IoT devices, a new research study claims.
According to the new research conducted by Acquity Group, part of Accenture Interactive, 8 out of 10 people have admitted to have privacy concerns with wearable devices, while almost half of them said that they were okay sharing data with third-party retailers via wearable devices if compensated with a coupon or a hefty discount.
Acquity’s latest research, conducted on more than 2,000 consumers across the United States to study the gap in consumers’ fears of data privacy and their actual purchasing behaviour, found that 28 percent of the respondents were willing to share wearable data for coupons and discounts based on their lifestyles, 22 percent were willing to do the same in return for information on better exercising and on better eating habits respectively, while 19 percent of them agreed to share data for coupons on exercise and fitness gear.
The research study titled “State of the Internet of Things” also revealed that 40 percent of the respondents would not share information with anyone no matter what the perks, while 9 percent of them are willing to exchange without any incentives as well.
Jay Dettling, President of Acquity Group said that the research study found that various companies manufacturing wearable devices should focus on specific benefits that sharing data will deliver to consumers in order to capitalize on IoT opportunities.
As per the study, more than 69 percent of consumers will own an in-home Internet of Things device by the year 2019, while smart thermostats are expected to have 43 percent adoption in the next five years.
