Best Practices for Data Protection and Privacy

Full Title of Reference

Best Practices for Data Protection and Privacy

Full Citation

Alison A. Besunder, "Assisting Business Clients with Key Data Protection and Privacy Considerations" (2009) in Best Practices for Data Protection and Privacy: Leading Lawyers on Creating a Data Protection Strategy, Dealing with Security Breaches, and Analyzing Recent Trends in Legislation (Aspatore Books, 2009). Buy Book

BibTeX

Categorization

• Issues: Information Sharing/Disclosure; Regulation/Liability; Privacy

Key Words

Data Mining, Privacy Law

Synopsis

What is “privacy”? Americans tend to think of the concept as “fundamental,” but few could appropriately define it if asked. A current discussion of “privacy” really focuses on the area of “information privacy”--in short, the right to control information about one's self. The irony inherent in the concept of this definition is that, as a legal matter, individuals do not “own” their personal information. Rather, the “ownership” interest (if any) in the intangible property of an individual's information itself resides in the individual or entity that is collecting, disseminating, and using that information. “Privacy” in the commercial context is less about confidentiality or secrecy than it is about fair information practices and how an organization is using information to make decisions about and transacting with other people. This chapter provides an overview of the existing laws that address privacy considerations affecting businesses, particularly those laws that concern the collection, use, access, distribution, and sharing of certain personal information of individuals.