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Simon Phipps's personal commentary

Triangulation

I've said here before that privacy is less about the individual details you disclose and more about their aggregation and the act of triangulation - discovering new facts by linking known ones. The ACLU Pizza dramatisation [via GMSV] explains the problem better than anything else I've seen so far, as well as showing just what might be achieved with web services. [caution: starts on loading, complete with audio]

Of course, this only shows half the problem. The real issue is what happens when computers make decisions using dynamically gathered data. When the airline reservation system calls a government web service with your passport and flight numbers and you are denied boarding, how do you challenge it? What recourse do you have against an algorithm using triangulation to reach a conclusion? There may be no facts you can challenge - all the source data, even for the government algorithm, may be accurate.

Paradoxically, the answer may lay in a direction that initially appears to reduce privacy. A combination of digital identity systems, the application of intellectual property rights to our personal data and strong legislation may be the way to control triangulation. The EU has better laws on data use but right now I don't see anyone shouting about the real issue, so more power to the ACLU - I just hope they can stomach the cure...

posted at 8:34 PM (UK) | |