A long time ago I was involved in assessing and using contact tracking solutions. It was during the Kosovo War (1998-1999) and I was working with an international charity organisation. At that time, I have not heard of Data Protection or privacy or Human Rights and did not have any safety procedures or standards to follow.
Did I do any impact assessments? I probably did but nothing related to data protection or privacy. Did the solution cause any harm to anyone? I don’t think so. However, I remembered I spent a fair amount of time reflecting on the users of the tracing systems. The main users were those affected /impacted by the War and the administrators of the systems. Would any Data Protection Impact Assessments (DPIAs) and Privacy Impact Assessments (PIAs) method help me back in 1998?
As part of my PhD, I examined various DPIAs and PIAs and I can say I’m not any wiser in using those impact assessments method except that now I am aware of Data Protection, data privacy and Human Rights.
Right now, I’m reflecting on the contact tracing app after reading the article – The NHS Contact Tracing App: 11 key talking points –published by the BCS. I wonder whether any of the DPIAs or PIAs method has been used by the app designers. I suspect not.
Today, 25th May 2020 marks the 2nd anniversary of the GDPR.
accessnow.org issued this report: TWO YEARS UNDER THE EU GDPR
Extracted from the conclusion:
Crippled by a lack of resources, tight budgets, and administrative hurdles, Data
Protection Authorities have not yet been able to enforce the law adequately. Worse,
some public authorities have misused the GDPR to undermine other fundamental rights.
While the GDPR in itself is not to blame for these failures, fingers are sure to be pointed
at the law if urgent actions are not taken. We hope that the recommendations put
forward in this report will help address the situation.
I wonder even with more resources available, would the DPAs be better able to enforce the law adequately?
I suspect not. More resources will not guarantee better outcomes.
Governments should ensure the application of the GDPR and the
protect the right to data protection in their COVID-19 response,
particularly in the areas concerning the collection and use of health
data, the use of tracking and geolocation, and the conclusion of
public-private partnerships for the development and deployment of
contact-tracing apps.
Balancing the rights – the rights and freedoms of individuals & public interests – for the Covid-19 response is probably where we will see or have seen the workings or misuses of GDPR.
I was out walking in my local park today. I couldn’t help noticing that there were less people in the park today compared to 2 days ago. Why? Well the weather wasn’t as nice today, dry but not sunny (between 5.35-6.30pm). Also, I forgot to wear my mask today and didn’t notice this until I was back home. I suddenly realised that I’m back to my ‘normal’ self or routine. Well…what is ‘normal’ or the ‘new norm’? For me, breaking or changing my habits are not ‘normal’ for me. Perhaps, because I’m quite an introvert at heart and enjoy peaceful stroll in quiet parks and quiet spaces with less people around. Also, I tend to put my mobile on silent mode or forget to bring it with me.
So, it’s just me and my mobile on my ‘normal’ walk. Do I want to be traced or tracked or monitored by my mobile or by ‘someone’ capturing my location or interaction with a tree or a passer-by or another nearby walker? Isn’t this an intrusion into my private life or space or sacred space? Sacred because I just want to be left in peace or to be left alone (privacy?) Does the ‘new norm’i.e. when the lockdown is removed, and we regain a sense of normality also means we regain our sense of freedom and privacy? Do I value my privacy above all else or above what the public or others demand? I value my privacy, but I know I don’t have absolute rights.
In the current epidemic the public interests or public health or save our NHS take centre stage above an individual’s right to privacy. The NHS is the hero in saving lives and also other essential services which we ‘normally’ take for granted. What I find upsetting is the uptake and/or the urgency in using technology (tech) for tracing or locating people or contact tracing. Yes, we all want to be back to ‘normal’ and get rid of the virus. Which is more dreadful – the virus or being under surveillance or tracked (without the opt-out)? The virus can kill – if your immune system is weak & you have no access to the needed medical aids and care. With the contact tracing or any tech that collects data about our ‘normal’ life (privacy?), it won’t kill anyone outright, right? It can save lives, so we’re told.
As we know we’re relying on tech to save lives like the use of tech in hospitals etc. Also, like in normal times, we use tech daily and now we rely on tech more than ever in lockdown. More than ever, we also need to check that we’re using tech that does not go beyond one’s safety net (our privacy) or intrude into one’s normal life. This is what privacy is all about, isn’t it? A crisis isn’t ‘normal’. Privacy is sacred in normal times and more so during a crisis.
January 17, 2020 – 5:11 pm
I started this blog – my 1st – back in December 2007 and back then blogging was a cool thing to do
Now, I hardly blog and have instead joined the various social media scenes i.e. Facebook, Twitter, Linkedln and lately Instagram (mostly for family-related pictures). Furthermore, I have been busy past 5 years with my PhD where I go beyond edisclosure/ediscovery and examined supply chain risks/relationships, Chinese wuxing, data security, data privacy, data (including cyber/security) incident response and the GDPR. I’ve also examined ethics and the usual PhD stuff on theories. My PhD thesis was on data privacy harm and incident response under the GDPR.
So, what will I be doing moving into 2020 and also with the start of the Chinese New Year, year of the metal Rat on 25th January 2020?
I’ll continue to use this blogging site to showcase or highlight or link to stuff which I’m interested in.
Stay tune in 2020 and beyond…
Wishing everyone a happy, smashing, healthy and prosperous 2020!
Many thanks,
Cher
August 28, 2019 – 8:58 pm
This post at pressread.com caught my attention today which drove me to attend the networking event.