By Paula Bruening, senior counsel for global privacy policy at IntelOver the past several months, privacy has been the focus of unprecedented media attention. The release of new technologies; enhancements in social networking, advances in intelligent highways, grids and homes; and the accelerating pace at which everyday activities migrate online have placed questions of privacy front-and-center in the media, in debates in local communities, and in conversations with friends and families.
Data Privacy Day, January 28, provides an opportunity to bring the focus back to privacy essentials – the ability of individuals to trust that information about them is gathered and used responsibly; protected against loss or misuse; and, when appropriate, used with their consent.
Intel understands the importance of privacy both to individuals navigating the online world, and to companies seeking to innovate and grow their enterprise. We understands that encouraging privacy requires a knowledgeable public and institutions willing to take the steps internally to foster data use that is transparent, disciplined and in accordance with established guidance and society’s norms.
Intel knows that privacy must be integral to the vision and the execution of technologies and data-driven business. Technologies transform the way individuals work, participate in civic life, connect with family and friends, shop, manage their financial life, and access education and research. New businesses are built on the data those technologies gather, share, and process. Privacy protections allow individuals to reap the benefits of technologies and data driven applications and at the same time maintain a zone within which they can realize their capacity for creativity and personal growth.
Intel recognizes that while the rules that most people have come to rely on to manage data responsibly and protect the individual remain as relevant and important today as they did when they were developed, they are also strained by dynamic changes in technologies, business models and data processing methods.
That’s why Intel continues its effort to “Rethink Privacy.”
We are taking steps to think about how to apply tested and longstanding privacy principles -- and the values they promote – to an environment of exciting innovation. Intel believes this “rethink” must focus on three key areas: privacy by design, accountability and transparency.
- Privacy by design requires that companies consider and take steps to enhance privacy at every phase of the development of a new product.
- Accountability requires that organizations put in place processes and procedures that encourage responsible decisions about the collection, use, storage and protection of data.
- Transparency serves overseers of data use and privacy - government, civil society and the press. It also informs individuals about the collection and use of their data and enables choice when it is meaningful and appropriate. Privacy requires an approach to notice that provides a comprehensive view of data practices to serve regulators and advocates. It also requires notice that is succinct and helps individuals make good privacy decision at the time of data collection.
Intel uses the same imagination that brought us the exciting changes we see in the digital world to figure out how we provide protections that work for individuals, enable innovation and allow all of us to realize and reap the benefits of the potential of new technologies.
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Part of being an accountable organization is implementation of robust security protections for personal data. Data Privacy Day provides the chance to consider the role of the individual in securing their devices and the responsibility they share in protecting the data eco-system from malicious actors.
Industry needs to recognize this important role and take steps to empower individuals to do their part. While users should be knowledgeable about their computers and the security risks that may exist, industry must make tools available to the public to make it possible to fulfill its role. Tools need to be easily accessible, user-friendly and effective. Intel has recently announced we will lead in making these tools available to individuals. Intel understands that trust is essential if individuals are to take advantage of all that their digital devices offer. To help promote this trust, Intel has announced we will make available for free a version of our mobile security software. At the same time, our Intel Security Group continues to innovate to provide better protections across all devices.
As we “Rethink Privacy” let’s remember that we all are invested in the safety, security and reliability of the data ecosystem we all rely on. On Data Privacy Day, let’s renew our resolve, as companies and individuals, to do our part.