CIPT practice question 13 of 30

In day to day interactions with technology, consumers are presented with privacy choices. Which of the following best represents the Privacy by Design (PbD) methodology of letting the user choose a non-zero-sum choice?

Answer options

A: Using images, words, and contexts to elicit positive feelings that result in proactive behavior, thus eliminating negativity and biases.

B: Providing plain-language design choices that elicit privacy-related responses, helping users avoid errors and minimize the negative consequences of errors when they do occur. Correct answer

C: Displaying the percentage of users that chose a particular option, thus enabling the user to choose the most preferred option.

D: Using contexts, antecedent events, and other priming concepts to assist the user in making a better privacy choice.

Correct Answer:

B. Providing plain-language design choices that elicit privacy-related responses, helping users avoid errors and minimize the negative consequences of errors when they do occur.

Explanation

Privacy by Design’s third foundational principle—“Full Functionality, Positive-Sum not Zero-Sum”—requires solutions that give individuals meaningful, error-resistant controls without forcing them to sacrifice usability or value. Providing clear, plain-language design choices that guide people toward the privacy setting they intend, while minimising the harm from mis-selections, exemplifies a positive-sum outcome: users retain both service utility and privacy protection.

Why Incorrect

A. Influencing affect does not, by itself, provide concrete controls or guarantee simultaneous privacy and functionality.
C. Social-proof displays only steer behaviour; they do not ensure a win-win privacy/utility configuration.
D. Priming may improve decision-making but still lacks the explicit, protective control mechanisms required for a positive-sum PbD implementation.

References

1. Cavoukian, A. “Privacy by Design: The 7 Foundational Principles,” Information & Privacy Commissioner of Ontario, 2009, Principle 3, pp. 12-13.

2. Cranor, L. “Necessary But Not Sufficient: Standardised Mechanisms for Privacy Notice and Choice,” J. Telecommunications, 2012, DOI:10.2139/ssrn.2601393, Sec. IV.

3. IAPP CIPT Body of Knowledge, v.3.0, Domain III, “User-Centric Design,” pp. 43-44.

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