There is an interesting article on the Personal Democracy Forum concerning government data collection, usage and ownership.In consideration of the 'Mind Your Own' census campaign to inform the Government of the limits of state intrusion, this is interesting:
•Who owns your data?
A reflection on data ownership, costs and values by Alistair Croll, co-chair of O’Reilly’s Strata conference.
The fundamental problem with data ownership is that bits don’t behave like atoms. For most of human history, our laws have focused on physical assets that couldn’t be duplicated. The old truism “possession is nine-tenths of the law” doesn’t apply in a world where making a million copies, each as good as the original, is nearly effortless.It’s not just the ability to copy that makes data different, however. How data is used affects its value.
But maybe it is not just about ownership and you should go deeper:
Data will leak out, as it always does, despite the best efforts of hardware companies. It’ll be around forever, even if we try to impose a statute of limitations on it. And we’ll find new ways to analyze it, making still more data. Yesterday’s online chaff may be the cornerstone of tomorrow’s new startup.Heartening, isn't it?
The important question isn’t who owns the data. Ultimately, we all do. A better question is, who owns the means of analysis? Because that’s how, as Brand suggests, you get the right information in the right place. The digital divide isn’t about who owns data — it’s about who can put that data to work.
