Negotiating Privacy and Mobile Socializing: Chinese University Students’ Concerns and Strategies for Using Geosocial Networking Applications

Abstract

Privacy risks have significant increase with the widespread use of geosocial networking applications (GSNAs). The Facebook data breach case in 2018 triggered many users’ concerns and focused attention on the debate about the trustworthiness of GSNAs globally. Particularly, the rapid development of Chinese GSNAs such as WeChat and Momo has been frequently cited as contributing to an increase in privacy risks in recent years. However, existing studies have primarily focused on the privacy risks of using GSNAs in Western contexts, while little is known about these issues in the Chinese context. This study thus attempts to expand upon prior research by examining concerns about GSNAs, as well as attitudes and strategies to address these concerns among Chinese university students. By conducting 47 semi-structured interviews, this study finds that although participants are generally concerned about the privacy risks of GSNAs, a few of them have taken steps to address their concerns. Five types of social privacy concerns, including information leakage/misuse, location tracking, malicious personal attacks, sexual harassment, and individual-targeted advertising, and three types of institutional privacy concerns, including information leaks, information tracking, and surveillance by apps and the Chinese government, have been identified in this research. Most participants have taken little action to address their privacy concerns and display an attitude of trust, ignoring and accepting the privacy risks of GSNAs. Comparatively, few participants have developed active strategies to mitigate their concerns, such as abstaining from or exercising caution when using apps and functions, and reporting privacy threats to app platforms. Significantly, this study offers new insights into users’ privacy concerns that are specifically associated with Chinese social and cultural contexts. However, as this research mainly focuses on privacy concerns and strategies from users’ perspectives, future studies are encouraged to delve into solutions and strategies to mitigate users’ privacy concerns in the global context of social media.