The citizens’ perspective : awareness, feelings and acceptance of surveillance and surveillance systems for fighting crime in Europe. A quantitative study

Abstract

The analyses and results in this document are based on a survey regarding the perceptions, feelings, attitudes and behaviour of European citizens towards surveillance for the purpose of fighting crime. This study was undertaken as part of the RESPECT project – “Rules, Expectations and Security through Privacy-enhanced Convenient Technologies” (RESPECT; G.A. 285582) – which was co-financed by the European Commission within the Seventh Framework Programme (2007-2013). Data were gathered, predominantly, through an online survey supplemented by a number of questionnaires administered in face to face interviews, in order to fulfil quotas and reach those citizens who do not use the internet. The survey consisted of 50 questions and sub-questions and was available online in all languages of the European Union. Overall, 5,361 respondents from 28 countries completed the questionnaire. Results reveal that more citizens feel insecure in the presence of surveillance than feel secure. At the same time, only a minority of citizens feel that they are well informed about laws and regulations regarding the protection of personal data gathered via surveillance, and only a small minority feel that these laws and regulations are effective. Amongst those who feel they are not informed about laws and regulations two thirds think that the laws are not effective and only a small minority think they are effective. Whereas, of those who feel informed, only one third think laws are not effective, and another third think they are effective, i.e., increasing the perceived knowledge about law appears to increase citizens’ perceived effectiveness of these laws. Although the majority of citizens feel insecure rather than secure in the presence of surveillance, the majority of those who perceive laws and regulations regarding the protection of personal data gathered via surveillance as effective feel secure in the presence of surveillance. Therefore, increasing the perceived effectiveness of data protection laws related to surveillance is likely to substantially increase citizens’ feelings of security in the presence of surveillance. The study also revealed that the link between citizens’ feeling of security/insecurity and perceived effectiveness of laws and regulations is stronger than the link between feelings of security/insecurity and perceived effectiveness of surveillance measures themselves. Overall, a majority of citizens feel happy with CCTV but generally unhappy with the other types of surveillance investigated. The relationship between feeling insecure in the presence of surveillance and feeling happy or unhappy with surveillance appears to be stronger than the link between feelings of security in the presence of surveillance and feeling happy or unhappy with surveillance. More research is needed to disentangle these relationships and effects between surveillance measures, feelings of security or insecurity, and citizens’ feelings about the general quality of life.