Indians comfortable sharing information online

INDIA: According to a recent study commissioned by Intel Corp. and conducted by Ipsos Observer on ‘Mobile Etiquette’, majority of adults and teens around the world are sharing information about themselves online and feel better connected to family and friends due to this. However, the survey also revealed a perception of “oversharing,” with at least six out of ten adults and teens saying they believe other people divulge too much information about themselves online, with Japan being the only exception country.

This annual ‘Mobile Etiquette’ survey examined the current state of mobile etiquette and evaluated how adults and teens in eight countries share and consume information online, as well as how digital sharing impacts culture and relationships. The research was conducted in the United States, Australia, Brazil, China, France, India, Indonesia and Japan.

“In today’s society, mobile technology is making digital sharing ubiquitous with our everyday activities, as evidenced by the findings from Intel’s latest ‘Mobile Etiquette’ survey,” said Sandeep Aurora, director of Marketing and Market Development, Intel South Asia.

“What is most interesting is not necessarily how widespread our use of mobile technology has become, but how similar our reasons are for sharing, regardless of region or culture. The ability to use mobile devices to easily share information about our lives is creating a sense of connection across borders that we are continuing to see flourish.”

Majority of Indians are confidently sharing information online
The India findings of the study revealed that the respondents were comfortable sharing information online, with 81 percent adults in India sharing information online once a week or more and close to 48 percent once a day or more.  Inter personal communication seems to have taken a beating as 64 percent of adults in India prefer to share information online than in person and 44 percent said they were embarrassed by or regretted something they have shared online.

Online networking platforms seem to have moved beyond their popularity to being a part of the teenager’s lives as 69 percent of teens feel they are “missing out” if they are not able to share or consume information online. Further, 43 percent of the teen respondents are keen to make sure every moment of their life – even the ordinary one - is posted online.

Awareness on mobile etiquette
Intel powers today’s mobile lifestyles with Intel Core and Intel Atom processor families inside many peoples’ favourite mobile devices (smartphones, tablets, laptops and Ultrabook systems). With more people using mobile devices to connect to the internet, Intel technology also increasingly powers cloud-based services that allow people to create, share and consume content and enjoy amazing digital experiences anytime, anywhere.

As the availability of internet-enabled mobile devices increases, a continued awareness of how people use these devices is also on the rise. Over 80 percent of adults responded to Intel’s ‘Mobile Etiquette’ survey wishing that people practiced better etiquette when using mobile devices in public. Majority of people think mobile manners have become worse, with the exception of adults in China who are more likely than others to believe mobile manners have truly started to improve (compared to a year ago).

“Etiquette is all about how we interact with one another, whether in person or online,” explained Sandeep Aurora. “The latest results from Intel’s ‘Mobile Etiquette’ survey clearly show that the question going forward won't be if we share online, but how we share online. Mobile devices enable us to share in the moment, and etiquette helps us decide how to share and connect in ways that are positive and enhance our relationships.”

As an innovator behind the technology powering mobile devices and mobile lifestyles, Intel is on a continued quest to understand consumers’ changing mobile usage models, how these models impact consumers’ lives and how technology should evolve in the future. This drives Intel innovation to create the technology experiences that people desire and love.

Key survey findings
* Approximately half of adults around the world feel overloaded by the amount of information people share online. Yet, adults and teens across the globe are sharing a wide variety of information online, with photos of themselves or people they know cited as one of the top things being shared.

* While the survey revealed that digital sharing on mobile devices helps many people feel more connected to others, the tendency to share too much information can annoy everyone for various reasons.

* More than 85 percent of survey respondents across the globe wish people thought more about how others will perceive them when sharing information online. At least one-quarter of adults and one-third of teens around the world, with the exception of Japan and Indonesia, have been embarrassed by something they have done online. Many also admit to having a different personality online and to sharing false information online.

* Majority of teens, with the exception of Japan, admit to constantly checking what their friends are sharing online and feeling like they are missing out when they are not able to share or consume information online.