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Module 5

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Module 5

Uploaded by

dustin.dailing
Copyright
© © All Rights Reserved
Available Formats
Download as PDF, TXT or read online on Scribd
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Introduction

Online data is a broad concept and the way it’s used, accessed and distributed varies in

ways that make regulation both difficult and complicated. The way we first consider a

person’s data would be through clicks and social media sites like Facebook and Twitter

but the EU also considers information written about a person like an article or blog.

Because of the span of data collected, questions arise such as: how long can data be

kept? What can it be used for? Who should have access? Governments have decided

to regulate data in various ways and all have received their fair share of controversy.

Facebook and Cambridge Analytica

Facebook has long been a leader in data collection to improve its services and generate

revenue through selling the data and advertising. On their site, they also allowed third

parties to do the same. In 2012 CEO Mark Zuckerberg wrote an email to a director at

Facebook that said “I’m generally skeptical that there is as much data leak strategic risk

as you think, I just can’t think of any instances where that data has leaked from

developer to developer and caused a real issue for us.” In 2018, a whistleblower came

to several newspapers with information that Facebook was selling tens of millions of

users’ data to a company called “Cambridge Analytica” that was using the information to

post political ads fake news stories and solicit donations in the 2016 election. Due to the

controversy, Facebook stock dropped and they tried to get ahead of the story by

blaming Cambridge Analytica for the fallout. Facebook stated Cambridge was at fault
and violated the trust and policies of Facebook but members of Cambridge disagreed

stating that thousands of apps were using the same methods to harvest data and all

were permitted.

Cambridge Analytica was not the first reason that data privacy was a public concern but

the high-profile nature of the situation caused governments like the EU to take a stand

for privacy.

General Data Protection Regulation

In the wake of Cambridge Analytica, the EU passed the General Data Protection

Regulation (GDPR) which set out the peremiters in which data would be stored, used,

erased, etc. within the EU. The GDPR was set to levy huge fines against violators that

shared data without properly informing those that gave the data, refused to share what

data was collected and when the data should be erased. This includes third-party data

about a person that was not provided by the person themselves and is no longer

relevant.

Some states such as California, Colorado, Connecticut, Utah, and Virginia have passed

similar laws regarding privacy but federal legislation has not been successful
To what extent should people own their data?

In my opinion, people should have access to their data similar to the EU. Right to have

access to the data that was collected, the right to see where it is going and how it’s

used, and the right to have it erased. Big Data drives several avenues of our economy

and makes companies provide a better service/lets companies know what products to

provide but the customers that are providing the data deserve to know how it’s used.

As companies have provided a customer a good or service from which the data

derives, what ownership interest do they have?

Part of the GDPR is accountability for the data that they are holding. In my opinion, data

should be treated similarly to a company's finances. It should be tracked, and able to be

audited, and the controller should be accountable for securing it.

1)How Cambridge Analytica Sparked the Great Privacy Awakening -Issie Lapowsky
https://www.wired.com/story/cambridge-analytica-facebook-privacy-awakening/
Links to an external site.

2)Academic linked to Cambridge Analytica data mining sues Facebook for defamation -
Anna Schecter
https://www.nbcnews.com/tech/tech-news/academic-cambridge-analytica-data-mining-s
ues-facebook-defamation-n984076
Links to an external site.

3)Data privacy laws: What you need to know in 2023 - Osano Staff
https://www.osano.com/articles/data-privacy-laws#:~:text=Despite%20numerous%20pro
posals%20over%20the,it%20still%20faces%20significant%20hurdles.

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