Timing is everything?

Many commerce websites post privacy policies to address Internet shoppers' privacy concerns. However, few users read or understand them. Iconic privacy indicators may make privacy policies more accessible and easier for users to understand: in this paper, we examine whether the timing and placement of online privacy indicators impact Internet users' browsing and purchasing decisions. We conducted a laboratory study where we controlled the placement of privacy information, the timing of its appearance, the privacy level of each website, and the price and items being purchased. We found that the timing of privacy information had a significant impact on how much of a premium users were willing to pay for privacy. We also found that timing had less impact when users were willing to examine multiple websites. Finally, we found that users paid more attention to privacy indicators when purchasing privacy-sensitive items than when purchasing items that raised minimal privacy concerns.