Of more than 4,000 online users, 80.1 percent said they are concerned with the privacy of their personal information while using the Web, according to a Burst Media study published today. The survey was designed to understand the affect of online privacy on surfers and the its subsequent effect on advertisers.

Respondents to the survey cited concern over the privacy and the subsequent use of personal information including age, gender, income and online habits. The survey also showed the level of concern increased with the user's age. Sixty-seven percent of respondents aged 18-24 listed privacy concerns, this increased to 85.7 percent for those aged over 55, Burst Media reported.

"Advertisers must take concrete actions to mitigate consumers' privacy concerns and at the same time continue to deliver their message as effectively as possible. In addition and as recently seen in the news flare up regarding Facebook's privacy controversy, publishers need to be completely transparent about their privacy policies," said Chuck Moran, vice president of marketing for Burst Media.

Further, almost 63 percent of users believe Web sites track their behaviour in order to use this information for advertising purposes. Concurrently, respondents were unwilling to sacrifice this personal information for more accurate advertising.

The full copy of Burst's Online Insights report on privacy is available on the Burst Media Web site.