Cross-cultural Privacy Literacy in E-commerce: Testing Users’ Understanding of Platform Data Practices

This study investigates users’ declarative knowledge of data collection practices on e-commerce platforms in different cultures, focusing on Amazon in the United States and Taobao in China. Unlike prior research emphasizing general privacy awareness or technical skills, this study examines platform-specific knowledge of what data is collected—an essential but often overlooked aspect of privacy literacy. Data from 318 Amazon users and 189 Taobao users were analyzed using chi-square tests across multiple data types. A five-pint Likert scale was employed to assess users’ knowledge objectively and reduce potential inaccuracies associated with self-reported bias. Results show that Taobao users demonstrated significantly greater accuracy in identifying platform data collection practices, particularly concerning sensitive data such as personal identifiers and financial information. In contrast, Amazon users exhibited knowledge gaps despite reporting higher self-perceived privacy awareness in prior studies. These findings suggest that privacy literacy is culturally influenced and that procedural privacy behaviors may not align with knowledge in high power distance societies. The study emphasizes the need for platform-specific privacy education and culturally informed approaches to support informed privacy decisions online.