Amazon most trusted online brand in Germany

The protection of personal data on the internet been a hot topic in Germany. Germans in general seem to have a rather distrustful attitude towards online services. One in three Germans only uses websites and apps that they know and trust. More than 40% of German internet users are concerned that companies collect too much of their personal data while they are online. In addition, almost one in two users tries to share as little personal information as possible.

Not all online services arouse the same amount of distrust among German online shoppers, though. Social media platforms or blogs and forums, for example, are among the less trusted services. Meanwhile search engines and video portals reach higher trust levels. Online stores rank in midfield. When asked about actual brands and companies, the trust that German internet users place in online services also varies greatly.

42% trust Amazon with their personal data

Having in mind that only 17% of German internets users state that they generally trust online stores when it comes to the protection of their personal data. The number one most trusted online brand might come as a surprise. With 42% of German internet users trustfully sharing their personal data with Amazon, the e-commerce giant, is the most frequently trusted online brand in the eyes of Germans.

Thus, Amazon also reaches significantly higher trust levels than other tech giants such as Google, Apple or Facebook. Only one in five German internet users trusts Facebook to handle their data responsibly, for instance.

Huawei and LG are the least trusted brands

The Asian tech companies Huawei and LG reach the lowest levels of trust in this comparison. Only 11% and 10% of German internet users have a good feeling when sharing their personal data with the two brands, respectively.

32% do not trust the companies at all

Most noticeably, none of the mentioned brands reaches trust levels above 50%. In other words, most Germans still do not trust any of the brands to handle their personal data in a responsible way. Moreover, 32% explicitly state that they trust none of the mentioned companies.

This means that there is still a lot of work to do for internet companies in the field of data protection and transparency in the eyes of the German online population.