Privacy - the new guidelines

Privacy 2.0
-erosions of privacy are often better understood as other kinds of harms
-'loss of privacy' may really be loss of security
-much anxiety about genetic privacy would go away if medical care were affordable to all
-citizens should have the right to monitor and post information about the activities of govt and officials
-people are gaining the tools to control their own personal information

Data Fusion
-linking large amounts of personal data into single applications is now only used for specific contexts such as casinos and child-support agencies
-databases are often riddled with errors and mis-matches
-who is responsible for ensuring accurate data?

Genetic Privacy
-genetic testing will add highly targeted date to medical records; managing these electronically will allow outsiders to easily access others health information
-insurers and employers will use private health details to deny cover or fire or not hire based on such information
-existing laws offer weak protection against unauthorised disclosure or misuse of personal health information

Wiretapping
-advances in telephone switching has made it more difficult for govts to monitor communications
-Federal agencies want internet companies to comply with wiretapping requirements
-the risks are that surveillance may be misused by the authorities or even subverted by criminal or terrorist groups

Cryptography
-mathematical tools exist to protect privacy and secure communications
-anonymity can be created by using protocols to send data through networks

RFID (radio-frequency tags)
-RFIDs are being embedded in personal items and identity documents
-without security these items are vulnerable to snooping or profiling of individuals

RFID is notoriously insecure. At Black Hat this year they demonstrated sniffing data from a "smart card" at 30 feet.