Report on Activities - 2001 Data Users Opinion Survey

In 2001, the PCPD invited the Social Sciences Research Centre of the University of Hong Kong to conduct the fifth annual opinion survey. The fieldwork relating to data user organizations was conducted between mid-August and late September 2001 using a self-administered mail questionnaire. In total, 228 usable questionnaires were returned giving a response of 58.5%.

Although the content of the 2001 Data Users survey was much the same as that for the 2000 survey, significant changes were made to the sampling frame in order to investigate five specific economic sectors: healthcare, banking and finance, insurance, real estate, telecommunications and government departments. One consequence of this modification of the sample structure is that any comparison of results with those obtained in previous years must recognize the nature of the respective sample differences.

The main objectives of the Data Users survey were as follows:

• To focus upon the attitudes and experiences of organizations drawn from the five non-government sectors mentioned, and the government sector.
  
  
• Secondly, to investigate data users attitudes and the measures taken to implement the provisions of the PD(P)O, and in particular, their practices pertaining to employment-related personal data privacy.
  
  
• Finally, to study identified practices relating to common personal data problems, e.g. debt collection practices and direct marketing in non-government sectors.
  

The percentage of respondent organizations claiming that their management had formally adopted written policies to comply with the PD(P)O increased from 63.3% in 2000 to 74.8% in 2001 (Figure 1).