Personal Data and Transparency

Reuben Binns, PhD Web Science

Supervisors: Lisa Harris, Management David Millard, Computer Science Michel O'Floinn, Law

rb g!!"soton#ac#u$, "%D&inns

Background
Every day, web users give away information such as likes and dislikes, purchase histories, messages, emails, tweets, GPS coordinates, browsing habits and search terms. any people now track their daily activity, health and diet via the web. !hen combined, such data constitutes a rich digital profile of our lives. ining and analysing this data can reveal a lot for marketers, researchers and individuals themselves.

Who, what, where and why?

"ata about the ways organisations use personal data was collected from the #$% over a & year period. #t covers over &'(,((( data controllers. !e used this to investigate the reasons for data collection, the types of personal data collected and from whom, the types of recipients who have access to the data, and international data transfer arrangements. )his paints an overall picture of the personal data landscape in the *+.

Applications
achinereadable reports on privacy practices can support transparency and broader social goals, Powering intermediary services to provide advice to privacyconscious individuals. -elping data protection regulators discover good and bad practices. $rossreferenced with other data to e.amine the relationship between privacy practices and other factors such as location, growth or industry.

Web Science