The Privacy, Identity & Consent Blog

Privacy is often defined as “the right to be left alone” (OED). The key issue here is the ‘right’ - not the ‘alone’. Very few of us choose to be left entirely alone, we surround ourselves with people, phones, computers, tvs, radios etc. But we want to know we could be left alone in a given context: I’m happy to be called by family & friends at weekends, but have no interest in receiving calls from double glazing firms.

I only have one identity. That’s me. I know who I am. You can’t steal it from me. But I use many personae, and the UK, like many ‘western’ nations, is built upon pseudonymity. For example, I have about a dozen pieces of plastic in my wallet. There is no direct link between the Toby that holds a Visa card and the T Stevens that holds an Amex. When I apply for a new financial product, the provider has to rely on the likes of Experian and Equifax to derive confidence about whether those are the same individual.

For a while now I've been waiting for the issue of data losses to permeate the popular media. Soaps are a great way to get people plugged into these awareness ideas. Well, I'm delighted to announce it's happened, in The Archers of all places. Carrie's lost the paper folder containing everyone's weights from the slimming club. Unencrypted obviously. This is likely to be their own data Chernobyl (perhaps a better metaphor here might be the 'data anaerobic digester?'), and the repercussions will be felt all the way to The Bull. I can't wait to hear what happens next.

In light of James Garner's marathon effort, I'd like to put in a sponsorship plug for my forthcoming charity cycle ride. Please read on and lend your support!