When it comes to privacy whom does the public trust? Last year, they trusted Facebook and eLoans. according to the Ponemon Institute's annual Most Trusted Companies for Privacy Study. It
is the fifth consecutive year that American Express earned the Most
Trusted for Privacy distinction. IBM, Johnson & Johnson, Hewlett
Packard, and E-Bay rounded out the five top-rated companies. In the communications field Verizon Wireless bested the new comer to the list AT&T.
Verizon was also the highest-ranked communications company on the 2008 list of Most Trusted Companies for Privacy.
The
rankings were derived from responses given by 6,627 U.S. adults that
included more than 38,000 individual company ratings, 229 of which were
mentioned at least twenty times. Among the brands that made the top
twenty were four not listed in the previous study, including Google,
Weight Watchers, Walmart, and AT&T. Of the companies listed last
year, Facebook, AOL, and eLoan did not make the 2010 list.
rankings were derived from responses given by 6,627 U.S. adults that
included more than 38,000 individual company ratings, 229 of which were
mentioned at least twenty times. Among the brands that made the top
twenty were four not listed in the previous study, including Google,
Weight Watchers, Walmart, and AT&T. Of the companies listed last
year, Facebook, AOL, and eLoan did not make the 2010 list.
"2009
was a tumultuous year for privacy, as illustrated by Facebook's drop
out of the top twenty in a year when they found themselves at the
center of a very public debate over the evolution of their privacy
policies and settings," said Dr. Larry Ponemon, chairman and founder,
Ponemon Institute. "Facebook draws a great deal of attention because
they have chosen to innovate on the issue of privacy in a highly
visible manner, and while they were rewarded for their efforts last
year, consumers were less kind to them this year, showing just how
important privacy protection is as a brand asset." "It's an honor to be named to this list" said Kathy Zanowic, chief
privacy officer for Verizon. "Privacy is a strategic priority at
Verizon because we know consumers will only use the full capabilities
of our products and services if they trust that their information will
remain private. We value the trust that consumers place in us, so it's
very gratifying to have our privacy policy and practices recognized for
giving our customers the high standard of privacy protection they
deserve."
"We are honored to be recognized as a
most trusted company in privacy," said Dorothy Attwood, AT&T senior
vice president for public policy and chief privacy officer. "At
AT&T, privacy commitments are fundamental to the way we do business
every day, and we use powerful security safeguards to protect customer
data."
was a tumultuous year for privacy, as illustrated by Facebook's drop
out of the top twenty in a year when they found themselves at the
center of a very public debate over the evolution of their privacy
policies and settings," said Dr. Larry Ponemon, chairman and founder,
Ponemon Institute. "Facebook draws a great deal of attention because
they have chosen to innovate on the issue of privacy in a highly
visible manner, and while they were rewarded for their efforts last
year, consumers were less kind to them this year, showing just how
important privacy protection is as a brand asset." "It's an honor to be named to this list" said Kathy Zanowic, chief
privacy officer for Verizon. "Privacy is a strategic priority at
Verizon because we know consumers will only use the full capabilities
of our products and services if they trust that their information will
remain private. We value the trust that consumers place in us, so it's
very gratifying to have our privacy policy and practices recognized for
giving our customers the high standard of privacy protection they
deserve."
"We are honored to be recognized as a
most trusted company in privacy," said Dorothy Attwood, AT&T senior
vice president for public policy and chief privacy officer. "At
AT&T, privacy commitments are fundamental to the way we do business
every day, and we use powerful security safeguards to protect customer
data."