Change the Paradigm: Embed Privacy into Technology and Ride the Next Wave

Dr. Ann Cavoukian
Information and Privacy Commissioner of Ontario

Monday, September 29, 2008, 11:00 am
Humanities Theatre, Hagey Hall, University of Waterloo

Abstract:

People keep asking, is privacy dead in this fishbowl age of `ubiquitous data availability'? Think video surveillance... think biometrics... think RFID. Real-time or offline, we are under growing surveillance as we go about our daily lives. We are told that we need all of this surveillance to ensure public safety, fight crime, control access to resources, and achieve operational efficiencies. Privacy is a luxury standing in the way of societal goals, so privacy has to give way, right? Wrong.

If you believe this, then you're dating yourself. This is classic "zero-sum" thinking, commonly associated with an "it's us or them" mentality. Regrettably, this is still a common perspective. Dr. Ann Cavoukian will explain why privacy is not opposed to achieving other desirable goals -- be they security, business, or technical objectives. "Privacy by design" embeds privacy into invasive surveillance technologies without sacrificing data security, system functionality, efficiency, usability, or accountability, thereby transforming it in the process.

So the message is: We can have both security and privacy. By adopting a "positive-sum" paradigm and wedding it to "privacy by design," you can advance to what Dr. Cavoukian is calling, "Transformative Technologies," the next wave of privacy... Come and learn about the next wave.

Bio:

Dr. Ann Cavoukian is recognized as one of the leading privacy experts in the world. An avowed believer in the role that technology can play in protecting privacy, Dr. Cavoukian's leadership has seen her office develop a number of tools and procedures to ensure that privacy is protected in Ontario b and around the world. Dr. Ann Cavoukian was appointed Ontario's Information and Privacy Commissioner in 1997, and is the first to be reappointed for a second term.

Noted for her seminal work on Privacy Enhancing Technologies in 1995, her mantra of "privacy by design" seeks to embed privacy into the design specifications of technology, thereby achieving the strongest protections.

Dr. Cavoukian's published works include "Who Knows: Safeguarding Your Privacy in a Networked World" (1997), written with Don Tapscott, and "The Privacy Payoff: How Successful Businesses Build Customer Trust" (2002), written with Tyler Hamilton.