Much has been written over the past couple of years about “big data” (See, for example, here and here and here). In a new article, Big Data for All: Privacy and User Control in the Age of Analytics, which will be published in the Northwestern Journal of Technology and Intellectual Property, Jules Polonetsky and I try to reconcile the inherent tension between big data business models and individual privacy rights. We argue that going forward, organizations should provide individuals with practical, easy to use access to their information, so they can become active participants in the data economy. In addition, organizations should be required to be transparent about the decisional criteria underlying their data processing activities.
The term “big data” refers to advances in data mining and the massive increase in computing power and data storage capacity, which have expanded by orders of magnitude the scope of information available for organizations. Data are now available for analysis in raw form, escaping the confines of structured databases and enhancing researchers’ abilities to identify correlations and conceive of new, unanticipated uses for existing information. In addition, the increasing number of people, devices, and sensors that are now connected by digital networks has revolutionized the ability to generate, communicate, share, and access data.
Data creates enormous value for the world economy, driving innovation, productivity, efficiency and growth. In the article, we flesh out some compelling use cases for big data analysis. Consider, for example, a group of medical researchers who were able to parse out a harmful side effect of a combination of medications, which were used daily by millions of Americans, by analyzing massive amounts of online search queries. Or scientists who analyze mobile phone communications to better understand the needs of people who live in settlements or slums in developing countries.