Leading social game publisher Zynga has launched PrivacyVille, a new, somewhat-interactive tutorial designed to reward players for learning about the company's privacy policy.
The newly redesigned section of Zynga's site dresses up the usual wall-of-text corporate privacy policy with a scene that wouldn't look out of place in Zynga's popular CityVille.
Users can click the various buildings and structures in this scene to read quick summaries detailing various elements of Zynga's data storage and sharing policies, earning advancement on a progress bar as they do.
After reading through the entire summary, users have to answer five insultingly simple multiple choice questions about the policy to earn 200 zPoints, which can be redeemed in Zynga's RewardVille hub for exclusive virtual items.
"We know there is an interest in making privacy policies more approachable," Zynga general counsel Reggie Davis told TechCrunch. "We wanted to take a page from our game DNA to create a privacy tutorial that’s accessible, social and fun."
Data protection policies have gained added salience for gaming companies in recent months after a wave of computer attacks exposed personal information players submitted to companies from Sony to Sega.
In its recent IPO filing, Zynga noted that it was subject to a number of governmental and other legal obligations regarding the storing of players' personal data, and that any "actual or perceived failure to comply with such obligations could harm our business."
I find the name pretty hilarious, but this is actually a good idea. Consumers really do need to break the habit of just automatically clicking "I accept" without reading, and this seems like a good way to get people educated on it.
