The effects of trust, security and privacy in social networking: A security-based approach to understand the pattern of adoption

Social network services (SNS) focus on building online communities of people who share interests and/or activities, or who are interested in exploring the interests and activities of others. This study examines security, trust, and privacy concerns with regard to social networking Websites among consumers using both reliable scales and measures. It proposes an SNS acceptance model by integrating cognitive as well as affective attitudes as primary influencing factors, which are driven by underlying beliefs, perceived security, perceived privacy, trust, attitude, and intention. Results from a survey of SNS users validate that the proposed theoretical model explains and predicts user acceptance of SNS substantially well. The model shows excellent measurement properties and establishes perceived privacy and perceived security of SNS as distinct constructs. The finding also reveals that perceived security moderates the effect of perceived privacy on trust. Based on the results of this study, practical implications for marketing strategies in SNS markets and theoretical implications are recommended accordingly. (C) 2010 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.