Despite NSA Leaks, Many Americans Haven't Changed Their Privacy Settings

Contrary to the view that people have "nothing to hide" from the government, most Americans are pro-privacy but ill-equipped to fully protect their information. New research shows more Americans consider privacy matters to be "very important," in particularly who collects and stores their personal information. But a large majority are finding it difficult to keep the government and private companies out of their business.The research follows a cascade of almost two years' worth of debate over the scope, scale, and effectiveness of the US government's surveillance programs, which have ensnared millions of Americans' phone records and Internet data. As lawmakers continue to debate whether or not to curb the National Security Agency's intelligence gathering efforts, many Americans are instead taking matters into their own hands. The research showed those who were more aware of the US government's surveillance programs were more likely to engage in privacy-enhancing activities than those who weren't.