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Check out this little gem



Frustrated with other homework assignments and unable to sleep, I decided 
to check out the assignment for this class :) Anyway, I found some 
intriguing info (NII stands for National Information Structure, BTW):

>(1) consumers, government, and businesses have a shared responsibility for 
>the fair and secure use of personal information; 
>
>(2) the technology of the NII has the potential, as yet unexploited, to 
>empower individuals to take steps to protect their personal information; 
>
>(3) openness about, and accountability for, the process of collecting and 
>using personal information is crucial on the NII; but, 
>
>(4) openness and accountability will not be meaningful until consumers 
>become educated about the ways in which their personal information is 
>being used in cyberspace, and by whom. 
>
>The Privacy Principles identify three values to govern the way in which 
>personal information is acquired, disclosed and used online -- information 
>privacy, information integrity, and information quality.

I found this gem (along with 200K of explanation) at 
http://www.iitf.nist.gov/ipc/privacy.htm. So, I ask a few questions:

1) What information is to be considered personal? Some types are 
obviously subject to some restricted access: checking balance, credit 
card numbers, etc. However, a lot of information is in that gray area.

2) Exactly what role should the individual be allowed to play in 
maintaining security of personal information? Again, there are obvious 
special situations (i.e. not bombing major information warehouses), but 
you'll probably get 250M different answers if you asked everyone in the 
U.S.

3) To what extent does privacy of information affect other's rights? The 
example I'm thinking of is the system in Va. where anyone can purchase a 
list of names of felons.

4) Extending the problem a little bit, what role should the U.S. 
government play in the use, growth, and (information) regulation of the 
Internet? The documents at this site seem to indicate a role of 
leadership and consensus-builder, but memories of the CDA are still fresh 
in my mind. Not to mention that the Internet is an international 
phenomenon, even though much of the infrastructure is in the U.S.

5) Being an education major, I have to agree fully with #4 above, though 
I can see easily how that principle can be the excuse some sick 
politician uses to spread propaganda.

6) I'm rambling.

7) Does the "personal information" change with the individual? Should 
famous celebrities, such as <insert your favorite recently deceased royal 
celeb here>, or politicians have more open to exposure than most 
individuals? (I totally think so ... though there is still a limit).


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