Theme C: Protecting Human Theme C: Protecting Human Dignity in the Digital AgeDignity in the Digital Age

Roundtable 4: Regional INFOethics Workshop Africa

UN Conference Centre, Addis Ababa

14h30 – 16h30, Thursday, 1414h30 – 16h30, Thursday, 14thth September, 2000 September, 2000

Dr Bob DayDr Bob Day

Executive Director: ICT, UnisaExecutive Director: ICT, Unisa

Privacy - 1Privacy - 1

Constitution(s) should be basis for protection of individuals’ privacy.

‘Right to Privacy’ relatively recent – not one of original 17th century human rights.

Globally, this right is not yet well defined. Some view OECD’s 1981 ‘Guidelines on the Protection

of Privacy..’ as an adequate basis for today’s privacy policies.

Others argue that the world has changed beyond recognition since then – hence the ‘Economist’s’ question in 1999, “are we witnessing the end of privacy?”

Privacy - 2Privacy - 2

Central issue is to what extent personal information may be used for purposes to which the individual has not consented

Suggested new ‘Privacy Principles’:– The right not to be indexed;– The right to encrypt personal information effectively;– The right to secure human checking of adverse decisions

made on computer profiles;– The right to be alerted to such decisions;– The right of disclosure about the collections to which others

have access and which may affect the projection of the profile of the individual concerned.

Privacy - 3Privacy - 3

Suggested Data Protection Practices:– Such practices should be entirely visible to the individual;– Any feature which results in the collection of personal data

should be known prior to its operation;– The individual should retain the ability to disable the feature

or application of choice

New technologies eroding privacy rights include:– Video surveillance cameras;– Identity cards;– Intelligent agents;– Genetic databases.

Privacy and BiometricsPrivacy and Biometrics

Biometrics offer irrefutable evidence of one’s identity, eg voiceprints; body parts such as retina, iris, and hand.

The use of biometric technology by government, law enforcement and business will grow dramatically in the next decade.

The existence of stringent safeguards – legislative, procedural and technical – will be needed to prevent biometrics posing a threat to informational privacy.

By applying encryption to biometrics, systems can enhance privacy by putting its power into the individual’s hands, not government or big business.

Approaches to Privacy - 1Approaches to Privacy - 1

The EU and USA differ significantly, especially on dispute resolution – who will judge and enforce alleged breaches.

The EU wants binding protections with ‘teeth’, eg:– An independent authority to investigate alleged violations

and impose sanctions;– Power to investigate complaints from EU citizens;– Financial payments must be made to aggrieved.

The USA is much softer, asking only that breaches be punished by removal of a ‘privacy seal’ from company web sites, despite their effectiveness having yet to be proved (possibly in breach of the OECD guidelines).

Approaches to Privacy - 2Approaches to Privacy - 2

Alternatives from New Zealand and Hong Kong favour a greater role for self-regulatory (or co-regulatory) initiatives, plus individual self –help, plus regulatory and legal action. The model includes:

– Statutory requirements of compliance with data protection principles;

– Development of principles, but flrxible and user-friendly;– Provision for sectoral codes of practice which can vary the

principles, and provide for sectoral complaint handling;– Default complaints and enforcement machinary for sectors without

codes of practice;– Provision of appeals, providing a uniform quality control

mechanism;– Avoidance of any generic registration or licensing requirement

Approaches to Privacy - 3Approaches to Privacy - 3

Possible ways forward: No universal agreement yet exists on the regulation of

information privacy. African states should collaborate, and act together to

decide on appropriate best practices, models and legislation to handle privacy issues

African states should have shared mechanisms to collectively stay abreast of international privacy developments - benefit from global experience, and customise in Africa’s context.

Consumer Protection - 1Consumer Protection - 1

E-commerce provides 24 hour shopping, wide choice, and outlets all over the world, BUT rights enjoyed via national consumer protection legislation do not apply.

Consumer rights will require international cooperation on ‘best practices’, and coordinated global oversight, including:– Basic format of an electronic contract;– Effective complaint mechanisms;– Limits of consumer liability;– Safeguards for the privacy of individuals;– Recourse to specific courts;– Cooperation between governments in support of legal

redress.

Consumer Protection - 2Consumer Protection - 2

In the development context of Africa: Much of the population does not currently

have access to banking facilities – the “unbanked”

ICT provides an excellent solution in the form of ‘electronic money’ and ‘smart cards’

BUT – more emphasis/research will be required in Africa on consumer protection relating to these electronic payment instruments

Consumer Protection - 3Consumer Protection - 3

How does the developing world identify and respond to misinformation and the withholding of crucial information – from their own governments, and from the multi-nationals?

What can we learn from such cases as:– The tobacco wars– Blue Circle asbestos in the Northern Cape

Who retains credibility?

Freedom of Speech - 1Freedom of Speech - 1

On a broader scale, for the Knowledge Society to flourish, it is important that society strikes the best balance between encouraging the free flow of information, including freedom of speech, and protecting the rights of those to whom that information may relate

Even in the most liberal societies, bodies within the ‘establishment’ see some information as ‘sensitive’ or potentially threatening to their area of influence (or power)

Historically, the establishment has established ways to control said information, but usually not transparently

Freedom of Speech - 2Freedom of Speech - 2 What is a ‘maveric’ and do we need them? They usually identify a ‘major problem’, want dramatic

changes, are vociferous, tenacious, and often appear to be ‘misguided’ (but later, sometimes, prove to be right)

The ‘establishment’ prefers incrementalism – building on what they believe, and usually control

At some stage, most societies marginalise, even persecute maverics (conspiracy theory?) – label their views as ‘extreme’ or ‘fundamentalism’

BUT, where does innovation and entrepreneurship most often originate – the developing world in particular needs to find alternative ways to manage maverics, rather than marginalisation..

Freedom of Speech - 3Freedom of Speech - 3

CENSORED!

Freedom of Speech - 4Freedom of Speech - 4 Change and transformation are accelerating globally More ‘maverics’ – more pressure on the establishment The web (together with other media) is being used to

reinforce the establishment position The web, however, is the first easily available medium

to provide everyone, including the ‘maverics’ with a global voice (providing alternative to more extreme outlets?)

Isn’t this righting the balance between privacy and freedom of speech?

Isn’t the openess and global availability of the web what makes it so uniquely valuable?

Isn’t this what we should be trying to protect most?

Theme C: Protecting Human Theme C: Protecting Human Dignity in the Digital AgeDignity in the Digital Age

Thank Youbday@unisa.ac.za