The professors of the Faculty of Economics of the Universitat de València participate in the study on digital behavior in the age of artificial intelligence (AI). The project, with inputs from Penélope Hernández and José M. Pavía, reveals that people share their privacy online because of the lack of the necessary tools to protect it.
The investigation, titled Exploring the privacy paradox: An experimental investigation of privacy-preserving behavioral responses in online shopping (Penélope Hernández, Antonio J. Morales, Zvika Neeman, Jose M. Pavía), highlights the significance of the correct use of technology to protect privacy. Analyzes this phenomenon through a laboratory experiment in which participants make purchases on an AI-powered digital platform.
¨The technology - say the authors-, not only it can erode privacy; when well-designed, it can also strengthen it” Penélope Hernández is a professor of the department of Economic Analysis at the Universitat de València and José M.Pavía, a professor from the department of Applied Economy.
The lack of tools explains why so much private date is shared
In the experiment, to reveal more or less private information would not affect the economic benefit of the participants. Despite that, they showed interest in protecting it when they had the necessary knowledge or tools.
The results indicated that the participants will continue to share the personal information knowing that the AI is learning a lot of information about them. Nonetheless, their conduct changed when they discovered how AI learns all of the information. The issue, therefore, is not that people do not value their privacy, but that they lack effective tools to protect it while interacting online.
The study also highlights that the groups most likely to adopt protective behaviors are those who feel they share a lot of information, women, and individuals with a higher aversion to risk.
Solutions for protecting the privacy
The researchers highlight two strategies to reduce the disclosure of the private information.The first one, Explainable AI, offers to the participants an explanation on how the algorithm learns, based on our online decisions. The second one, is an application that protects the privacy, helps in reducing shared information without affecting the economic benefits.
Implications for the government and companies
The research also raises implications for public policy and technological design. In this line, it concludes that “It’s not enough to simply warn users about the risks.”. According to the authors, ¨the standarization of the algorithm could facilitate the creation of the universal applications for data protection¨. With that, it can “to strengthen digital trust,” they emphasize.
In addition, it is emphasized that privacy solutions can become a competitive advantage for businesses. Thus, platforms that incorporate clear privacy management tools could attract consumers concerned about the security of their data.
Research on the real platforms
The authors of the experiment mention that even when the private information that was used, was artificial and registered previously, the participants developed the preferences to protect it. This suggests that, with the real personal data, the effect could be even better. As a next step, they propose applying the results to field experiments on real e-commerce platforms to see if the effects hold up.
Article´s references: Hernández, P., Morales, A., Neeman, Z., Pavía, J. (2026). "Exploring the privacy paradox: An experimental investigation of privacy-preserving behavioral responses in online shopping". Journal of Behavioral and Experimental Economics. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.socec.2025.102504