Over seven in 10 people across the U.S. worry about the personal data the government has about them and agree that Congress should hold public agencies accountable for safeguarding their information
(WASHINGTON, DC) — Today, the Center for Democracy & Technology (CDT) released nationally representative polling data revealing a majority of Americans (74 percent) are concerned about the privacy and security of their personal data that is held by the government.
These high levels of concern are consistent across demographic groups, including political affiliation, geography, and race and ethnicity. This novel research comes amidst the federal government’s unprecedented push to access and consolidate individuals’ sensitive data held by federal and state agencies.
“In a time of historic polarization, our research shows that Americans still agree on one thing: they are deeply concerned about what the government knows about them and how that power could be misused,” says CDT President and CEO Alexandra Reeve Givens. “These polling results should be a wake-up call to federal and state governments. People from all walks of life are paying attention, and want to hold elected officials and agency leaders accountable for handling their personal data with care.”
In addition to widespread concern about how their personal data is held and used, people across the U.S. also agree that government misuse of their sensitive information could cause significant societal harms:
- 73 percent of Americans agree that, “Without privacy laws and policies, it is likely that government agencies would use personal data to track and monitor anyone they want to.”
- 44 percent of Americans agree that, “If I were eligible to receive government benefits, I would not sign up for these benefits if I was unsure how the government would use my personal data.”
“At a time when trust in government is at an all time low, protecting personal data is more important than ever. Mishandling personal information destroys trust in government, and that makes it harder for agencies to deliver services, resulting in an American public that is more sick, unhoused, and undernourished,” says Elizabeth Laird, Director of the Equity in Civic Technology Project at CDT. “People want their privacy protected, and bipartisan majorities want their elected leaders to do something about it. Lawmakers who ignore privacy are significantly out of step with their constituents.”
79 percent of Americans agree that Congress should use its authority to hold the government accountable when it ignores existing privacy laws. To amplify this call for action, a diverse coalition of 22 organizations and individuals have joined a letter to Congress urging lawmakers to take immediate steps to address public concern about the privacy and security of personal data held by government agencies. This includes exercising its oversight authority to investigate public agencies’ handling of personal data to improve its understanding as it considers ways these concerns about privacy and security can be addressed.
The coalition letter has so far been signed by 18 organizations, along with four individuals, including the AI for Democracy Action Lab at Protect Democracy, American Association of School Librarians, Association of Public Data Users, Beeck Center for Social Impact + Innovation at Georgetown University, Coalition on Human Needs, Data Foundation, Electronic Privacy Information Center, League of United Latin American Citizens, LGBT Tech, MomsRising, Movement Advancement Project, National Immigration Law Center, New America’s Open Technology Institute, Public Citizen, TechTonic Justice, The Leadership Conference on Civil and Human Rights, UnidosUS, and Unitarian Universalists for Social Justice.
CDT’s research is based on a nationally representative omnibus survey conducted among a demographically representative U.S. sample of 1,008 adults.
The full text of the research report, summary brief, coalition letter, and explainer about why people should care about government data privacy are available on CDT’s website.
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The Center for Democracy & Technology (CDT) is the leading nonpartisan, nonprofit organization fighting to advance civil rights and civil liberties in the digital age. We shape technology policy, governance, and design with a focus on equity and democratic values. Established in 1994, CDT has been a trusted advocate for digital rights since the earliest days of the internet. The organization is headquartered in Washington, D.C., and has a Europe Office in Brussels, Belgium.