User data is information collected by digital platforms, including websites and apps, when you visit or interact with them. Standard user data that digital platforms collect are personal information, location data, and device type, but some platforms go further as per the content they serve. Let’s take an in-depth look at the user data that would be collected whenever you visit a digital platform.
Personal and Demographic Information
Digital platforms generate, process, and store user data such as your full name, email address, phone number, and physical address when you visit, log in, or sign up. Some require further information such as age, gender, marital status, geographical location, education level, and income level. While those serving specific objectives or purposes would go further and require that you provide the following user data:
- Racial or ethnic identity
- Faith or religious affiliation
- Political affiliation
Location Data
Travel, navigation, or service-hailing apps usually work with your GPS coordinates, IP address, and location history information, while social media platforms like X (formerly Twitter) may use the same user data to serve you location-specific content, like locally trending topics and news.
Device Information
Web platforms collect your device’s information data, for instance, device type (e.g., smartphone, tablet, desktop), device Operating System (Windows, Android, iOS, etc.), web browser type and version, and even your screen resolution.
User Preferences
E-commerce or product marketing platforms collect product preferences, while blogs and social media platforms collect content preference data. Mobile apps and new sites focus on notification preferences, while modern platforms targeting global audiences focus on language preference data.
Authentication Data
Mobile apps, e-commerce platforms, and other digital platforms operating on specific security levels collect the three minimum user information below from you when you register on them for the first time.
- Username (maybe be automatically generated from your name, email, or phone number)
- Password (usually stored securely through encryption)
- Security questions with corresponding answers
Biometric Data
Modern voting systems, demographic survey tools, and building security systems (entry and exit control systems) identify and authenticate people via user data generated through fingerprint scanning and facial recognition.
Payment Information
User data, such as credit card details, transaction history, billing addresses, order history, in-app purchases, and even subscription information—if applicable, when you buy goods or services online, for instance, on e-commerce platforms.
Social Media Data
Social media platforms require you to register an account consisting of your email, phone number, account, age, and location—solid user data, as well as your social connections, including friends, followers, and even activities like posting, sharing, or following, to create your profile.
Health and Fitness Data
Your lifestyle, including health, fitness, and dietary preferences, are user data if you use apps that track such regularly, for instance, the steps you walk on a given day, the time or dates of those activities, calories you burn, etc.
User-generated Content
What you write, publish, or upload as a user, including photos, videos, and other content, are user data, the same as the comments you make and reviews you post, especially on social media platforms.
Communication Data
When you send, receive, or forward emails or text messages, chat via apps, websites, or other digital platforms, or make or receive calls via conventional telephony, the platform generates, stores, and uses in one way or another.
Preferences and Settings
Choosing a theme, whether dark or light, selecting privacy or security options, and setting notification preferences on an app, website, or other digital platforms generate rich user data often used to customize your experience.
Survey and Feedback Data
Online surveys use questionnaires or interactive forms to generate user data like demographics, tastes, and preferences while gathering information, feedback, reviews, and opinions on products, services, etc.
Conclusion
Organizations actively gather user data through their digital platforms, which they are obliged to handle safely and securely, in addition to informing and seeking your consent as a user beforehand, as required by local privacy laws and regulations, a tricky yet crucial aspect of the web space. We can help you navigate it whether you are a user, owner, or developer. Get in touch today for an in-depth consultation.
Featured image source: FG Trade/iStock
