FPF Receives Grant To Design Ethical Review Process for Research Access to Corporate Data
Future of Privacy Forum (FPF) has received a grant to create an independent party of experts for an ethical review process that can provide trusted vetting of corporate-academic research projects. FPF will establish a pool of respected reviewers to operate as a standalone, on-demand review board to evaluate research uses of personal data and create a set of transparent policies and processes to be applied to such reviews.
New White Paper Explores Privacy and Security Risk to Machine Learning Systems
FPF and Immuta Examine Approaches That Can Limit Informational or Behavioral Harms WASHINGTON, D.C. – September 20, 2019 – The Future of Privacy Forum (FPF) released a white paper, WARNING SIGNS: The Future of Privacy and Security in an Age of Machine Learning, exploring how machine learning systems can be exposed to new privacy and […]
10th Annual Privacy Papers for Policymakers – Send Us Your Work!
The 10th Annual Privacy Papers for Policymakers awards have been announced. Register here to attend the event on February 6, 2020. We will open the submissions process for next year’s awards in fall 2020. Have you conducted privacy-related research that policymakers should know about? If so, we can help you get it in front of […]
School Safety Report Neglects Privacy Concerns
Yesterday, the Federal Commission on School Safety released a report detailing its conclusions, after holding a series of meetings and hearings in the wake of school shootings. Nearly every aspect of the Commission’s report focuses on sharing data and, thus, has privacy implications for students, teachers, and the public.
New Resource on FERPA's Health and Safety Emergency
The Future of Privacy Forum has released a new guide, Disclosing Student Information During School Emergencies: A Primer for Schools, which offers four best practices for information disclosure and answers five frequently asked questions about FERPA’s requirements for sharing information during health or safety emergencies. Read more about this guide in the Future of Privacy Forum’s […]
Empirical Research in the Internet of Things, Mobile Privacy, and Digital Advertising
In the world of consumer privacy, including the Internet of Things (IoT), mobile data, and advertising technologies (“Ad Tech”), it can often be difficult to measure real-world impact and conceptualize individual harms and benefits. Fortunately, academic researchers are increasingly focusing on these issues, leading to impressive scholarship from institutions such as the Princeton Center for Information Technology Policy (CITP), Carnegie Mellon University School of Computer Science, UC Berkeley School of Information, and many others, including non-profits and think tanks.
Unfairness By Algorithm: Distilling the Harms of Automated Decision-Making
Analysis of personal data can be used to improve services, advance research, and combat discrimination. However, such analysis can also create valid concerns about differential treatment of individuals or harmful impacts on vulnerable communities. These concerns can be amplified when automated decision-making uses sensitive data (such as race, gender, or familial status), impacts protected classes, or affects individuals’ eligibility for housing, employment, or other core services. When seeking to identify harms, it is important to appreciate the context of interactions between individuals, companies, and governments—including the benefits provided by automated decision-making frameworks, and the fallibility of human decision-making.
7th Annual Privacy Papers for Policymakers
We look forward to an exciting program of thought leadership, including academic guest speakers and the authors of this year’s PPPM scholarship (announced & awarded in November), who will engage with policymakers in a discussion of academic ideas with practical real-world impact.
Examining Ethics, Privacy, and Research Reviews
Today, the Future of Privacy Forum (FPF) and the Ohio State University’s Program on Data and Governance are holding a discussion of ethics, privacy and practical research reviews in corporate settings. This timely event, which follows the White House’s call to develop strong data ethics frameworks, convened corporate and academic leaders to discuss how to integrate ethical and privacy considerations into innovative data projects and research.
Algorithmic transparency: Examining from within and without
As the volume of consumer data grows, an increasing number of decisions previously made by humans are now made by algorithms. Many thought leaders have called for algorithmic transparency to ensure that these decisions aren’t leading to unfair or discriminatory outcomes, but algorithmic transparency is tricky to implement. Last December, FTC Commissioner Julie Brill acknowledged […]