Moca Network📍MY Blockchain Week (@Moca_Network): How Gen Z Thinks About Identity Data

How Gen Z Thinks About Identity Data How Gen Z Thinks About Identity & Data They share data more freely, because they want control over what they own. Gen Z is often called the “privacy generation.” But the numbers tell a more complicated story. They are not simply more private. They are more selective, more transactional, and more ownership-minded about data. They grew up inside social platforms, algorithmic feeds, cookie banners, data breaches, scam attempts, and online identity risks. So their relationship with privacy is not binary. It is conditional. They will share when the benefit is clear. But they also expect control over what happens next. The paradox: they share the most, and guard the most The clearest data point is the contradiction. According to Oliver Wyman Forum, around 88% of Gen Z say they are willing to share some personal data with social media companies, compared with about 67% of older adults. That makes Gen Z one of the most open generations when it comes to data sharing. But that does not mean they are careless. Gen Z also rates their willingness to trade data for a better digital experience about 15% higher than non-Gen Z. In other words, they understand the trade. Better recommendations, smoother onboarding, personalization, access, rewards, social discovery: they know data is part of the transaction. At the same time, they are more alert to identity risk than the generation directly above them. Research from the Center for Generational Kinetics found that 38% of Gen Z worry about protecting their identity online, compared with 29% of Millennials. So the paradox is clear: Gen Z is more willing to share data, but also more concerned about protecting identity. They are not careless. They are calculating. They are not anti-data. They are anti-losing-control. This is where most privacy conversations get Gen Z wrong. The old assumption is: Young people do not care about privacy. The better read is: Young people know data has value, and they want better control over the exchange. Usercentrics cites Cisco research showing that 42% of people aged 18 to 24 have asked companies what personal data they hold on them, compared with only 6% of people over 75. That is not passive behavior. That is a generation actively checking what companies know. Usercentrics also reports that 38% of Gen Z say they trust social media platforms with their data, while 37% trust government institutions. For Boomers, the pattern is almost the opposite: 71% trust government institutions, while only 4% trust social media. That does not mean Gen Z blindly trusts platforms. It means their trust model is different. They grew up with platforms as default infrastructure. They do not automatically treat institutions as safer. They judge trust by usefulness, transparency, relevance, and control. They are also more willing to engage with emerging data use cases. Usercentrics found that Gen Z is more than twice as likely as Boomers to share personal data for AI training, at 21% vs. 11%. Again, this does not prove they are careless. It proves they are pragmatic. They will share data if the exchange makes sense. But they expect the ability to understand, manage, and withdraw that exchange. Less: “Do not use my data.” More: “Tell me what you need, show me what I get, let me decide, and let me take it back.” That is the shift from passive consent to active control. Gen Z treats privacy as a dynamic spectrum Gen Z treats privacy as a dynamic spectrum. Usercentrics describes Gen Z privacy as shaped by audience, platform, and perceived value. That is the key. Privacy is not one fixed setting for this generation. It changes depending on context. They may share more in a private group chat than on a public profile. They may accept personalization from a platform they use daily, but reject the same data request from a brand they do not trust. They may share personal information for convenience, rewards, or access, but abandon the relationship if the platform becomes creepy, opaque, or exploitative. Privacy is not a wall. It is a dial. They are constantly asking: What do I get in return? Who controls this data? Can I take it back? Can I move my identity elsewhere? Is this platform using my data for me, or against me? That is why Gen Z can look both open and protective at the same time. They are not trying to disappear from the internet. They are trying to negotiate better terms for living inside it. And that matters because the trust gap is already visible. A Common Sense Media report cited by eMarketer found that 64% of teens say major tech companies do not care about their mental health or wellbeing, and 62% do not believe these companies will protect their safety at the expense of profit. At the same time, Gallup found that U.S. teens spend an average of 4.8 hours per day on social media. So Gen Z and younger users are not leaving digital platforms altogether. They are living inside systems they do not fully trust. That is exactly why control matters. From data collection to identity ownership If identity data has value, users should not be treated as passive data sources. They should be active owners of their credentials, reputation, preferences, eligibility, and verified attributes. A platform does not need to store your birth date if it only needs to know you are over 18. A merchant does not need your full profile if it only needs to verify eligibility. A financial app does not need to repeatedly collect the same information if a reusable credential can prove what is required. This is the difference between collecting identity data and verifying identity claims. The next identity layer should let users: own their credentials prove attributes without exposing raw data reuse verification across platforms revoke access when needed carry identity, reputation, and eligibility across ecosystems For platforms, this means they can verify what matters without becoming a storage layer for sensitive personal data. For users, it means identity becomes something they control, not something repeatedly extracted from them. This is the kind of future AIR by Moca Network is building toward: privacy-preserving identity infrastructure where users own their credentials, and platforms can verify without hoarding raw personal data. The generation that shares data most freely may be the first to demand they own it. That is not a contradiction. That is the future of digital identity. Sources: Oliver Wyman Forum, Center for Generational Kinetics, Usercentrics, Cisco Consumer Privacy Report, Common Sense Media, eMarketer, Gallup.