Mr Branding: Majority of Americans Worry Government Misuse of Personal Data Could Lead to Surveillance, Chilling of Benefits, and Demand Accountability

Wednesday, April 8, 2026

Majority of Americans Worry Government Misuse of Personal Data Could Lead to Surveillance, Chilling of Benefits, and Demand Accountability

by Elizabeth Laird, Maddy Dwyer, Quinn Anex-Ries

Limiting the collection, sharing, and consolidation of personal data that is held by government agencies has been a decades-long, bipartisan priority across the United States. [1] But these limits have been challenged over the past year as the federal government has cast aside long-standing privacy norms and initiated unprecedented access to and sharing of administrative data held by federal and state agencies. These actions have spurred significant pushback from the public, states, and civil society organizations, as well as the courts. They have also prompted many individuals in the United States to call into question how and why the government uses their information.

To better understand public sentiment and concerns around the government’s collection, sharing, and consolidation of personal data, the Center for Democracy & Technology (CDT) conducted nationally representative polling of U.S. adults (see more on the methodology, including n sizes, on p. 12 of the report). CDT found that concern is consistent and high and that people across the United States want to hold government agencies accountable for protecting the privacy of their personal data. Specifically:

A majority of Americans (74 percent) are concerned about the privacy and security of their personal data that is held by the government.;
Americans report that government misuse of data could lead to real-life impacts, such as surveillance and the chilling of rightful access to public benefits;
Americans agree that privacy laws and policies are important but are not familiar with their legal rights;
Worries about personal data are high, with certain data elements and reasons for data sharing raising particular concern, especially related to law and immigration enforcement; and
Americans want government held accountable for protecting their personal data.

Finally, certain communities express higher levels of concern regarding personal data that is stored by government agencies:

Communities of color are more concerned about data sharing with law and immigration enforcement agencies;
Older Americans are consistently more concerned about the privacy and security of personal data that is collected and stored by government agencies; and
Concerns and demands for government accountability are high across political affiliation, with Democrats reporting higher levels of concern on issues related to sharing data without consent.