11-4 Privacy and Data Protection
Key Concepts
- Data Privacy
- Data Protection
- GDPR (General Data Protection Regulation)
- CCPA (California Consumer Privacy Act)
- Data Breaches
- Encryption
- User Consent
- Data Minimization
- Access Control
- Privacy by Design
Data Privacy
Data Privacy refers to the ethical, legal, and operational framework that ensures the confidentiality, integrity, and availability of personal data. It involves protecting individuals' personal information from unauthorized access and misuse.
Example: A website that collects user email addresses must ensure that these addresses are stored securely and are not shared with third parties without explicit consent.
Data Protection
Data Protection is the process of safeguarding important information from corruption, compromise, or loss. It involves implementing technical and organizational measures to ensure the security of data.
Example: A company might use firewalls, antivirus software, and regular data backups to protect its customer database from cyber-attacks and hardware failures.
GDPR (General Data Protection Regulation)
GDPR is a regulation in EU law on data protection and privacy for all individuals within the European Union. It also addresses the transfer of personal data outside the EU and EEA areas. GDPR aims to give control to individuals over their personal data and to simplify the regulatory environment for international business.
Example: A European e-commerce site must obtain explicit consent from users before collecting their personal data and must provide a clear privacy policy explaining how the data will be used.
CCPA (California Consumer Privacy Act)
CCPA is a law that enhances privacy rights and consumer protection for residents of California, USA. It gives consumers the right to know what personal information is being collected about them, the right to delete their personal information, and the right to opt-out of the sale of their personal information.
Example: A California-based company must inform users about the categories of personal information collected and provide a "Do Not Sell My Personal Information" link on its website.
Data Breaches
Data Breaches occur when unauthorized individuals gain access to sensitive, protected, or confidential data. These breaches can result in the theft, leakage, or exposure of personal information.
Example: A data breach at a social media platform might result in hackers obtaining millions of users' email addresses and passwords, which could then be used for phishing attacks.
Encryption
Encryption is the process of converting data into a code to prevent unauthorized access. It ensures that data is secure during transmission and storage.
Example: A banking app might use encryption to protect users' financial information when it is transmitted over the internet, ensuring that it cannot be intercepted by hackers.
User Consent
User Consent refers to the permission given by users to collect, process, and store their personal data. It must be freely given, specific, informed, and unambiguous.
Example: A website must provide clear and concise privacy policies and obtain explicit consent from users before collecting their data, such as through a checkbox or an opt-in button.
Data Minimization
Data Minimization is the principle that only the minimum amount of personal data necessary for a specific purpose should be collected and retained. This reduces the risk of data breaches and misuse.
Example: A fitness app might only collect users' height and weight for calculating BMI, rather than asking for their full medical history, which is unnecessary for the app's primary function.
Access Control
Access Control is the practice of restricting access to data and resources to authorized individuals only. It ensures that only those with the necessary permissions can view, modify, or delete data.
Example: A company's HR system might restrict access to employee salary information to HR managers and senior executives, while other employees cannot view this data.
Privacy by Design
Privacy by Design is an approach that embeds privacy considerations into the design and operation of systems, processes, and technologies. It ensures that privacy is protected by default.
Example: A social media platform might design its features to minimize the collection of personal data by default, such as automatically disabling location tracking unless the user opts in.