Hasta la vista privacy, or how technology terminated privacy

Stylianou, K. K. (2011) Hasta la vista privacy, or how technology terminated privacy. In: Akrivopoulou, C. and Psygkas, A. (eds.) Personal Data Privacy and Protection in a Surveillance Era: Technologies and Practices. IGI Global, pp. 44-57. ISBN 9781609600839 (doi: 10.4018/978-1-60960-083-9.ch003)

Abstract

The destructive effects of digital technology on privacy are by now well documented, and it is usually assumed that the law's role is to avert overexposure of people's personal information. This essay takes a different view by arguing that the trajectory of technological developments renders the expansive collection of personal data inevitable, and hence the law’s primary interest should lie in regulating the use - not the collection - of information. This deterministic approach does not foreshadow the end of privacy, but rather suggests a necessary reconceptualization of privacy in the digital era. Once the law accepts the inevitability of the collection of personal information, it will be best in the position to focus attention on ensuring that the collected information is appropriately used, instead of wasting resources on trying to hinder in vain its collection. This cynical approach calls for alternative means of regulation, like self-regulation or emphasis on informed consent and transparency, and facilitates the flow of information by reducing the transactional cost of its sharing and dissemination.

• Item Type: Book Sections
• Additional Information: eISBN: 9781609600853.
• Status: Published
• Glasgow Author(s) Enlighten ID: Stylianou, Professor Konstantinos
• Authors: Stylianou, K. K.
• College/School: College of Social Sciences > School of Law
• Publisher: IGI Global
• ISBN: 9781609600839

Related URLs

• University of Glasgow Library Catalogue