75% of VKontakte users customize privacy
By ForGeeks Social network VKontakte has unveiled a study on changes in user attitudes toward online privacy. One of the most notable trends is that users are becoming more conscious of their online presence: they are becoming more active in adjusting their privacy settings and striving to create a comfortable environment for communication.
More than half of respondents (54%) think it’s important to determine who has the right to message them and view their profile. For 46%, it’s important to share personal information only with people they trust, and 44% want to communicate without pressure or expectations. At the same time, 42% said it’s important to be able to customize the platform’s interface to meet individual needs.
Women are more likely to pay attention to the quality of interactions in comments, with 44% preferring to filter out toxic comments, compared to 30% of men. Also, 22% of women would like to limit the number of people who have the ability to post reactions and comments on their posts, compared to 14% of men.
Hiding information about oneself remains the most popular strategy for protecting personal boundaries, with 67% of survey participants reporting this. Common methods include restricting access to profiles and using pseudonyms instead of real names. In the 18-24 age group, half of those surveyed prefer to send disappearing messages, seeing it as a way to control their personal space and end communication at the right time.
Privacy features are used regularly by 75% of VKontakte users. The most popular are settings to restrict access to audio recordings. Other top features include blocking calls, managing private messages, setting profile and video visibility, and the ability to hide old posts.
Men ages 20 to 26 are the most active in customizing their privacy. Women in their 30s and 36s are the next most likely to be regular users who are more likely to limit the number of people who can start a dialog with them. Teens under the age of 20 are less likely than other age groups to have privacy settings.
To minimize negative interactions, VKontakte uses algorithms that automatically hide hostile comments. Over the past year, the effectiveness of the neural networks responsible for moderation has increased by 49%. More than half of users (51%) prefer not to see such statements at all.
“People are becoming more mindful of their digital space: they’re customizing privacy, choosing who to share private things with, and taking breaks from communication with «Personal Space». Since its launch, the feature has been activated more than 3 million times – to temporarily narrow communication and reduce digital noise. It’s not about being closed, it’s about the right to choose. We strive to provide users with simple and clear tools that allow them to organize their digital presence in the way they feel comfortable,” said Alexandra Mitrokhina, head of the project area in the moderation and user interaction department.
The study was conducted in April 2025 using an online survey method. More than 1,000 users from different regions of Russia took part in it.
More than 1,000 users from different regions of Russia participated in the survey.
The 75% of VKontakte users customize their privacy was first published on ITZine.ru.
