Why the Economics Profession Must Actively Participate in the Privacy Protection Debate
AEA Papers and Proceedings
vol. 109,
May 2019
(pp. 397-402)
Abstract
When Google or the US Census Bureau publishes detailed statistics on browsing habits or neighborhood characteristics, some privacy is lost for everybody while supplying public information. To date, economists have not focused on the privacy loss inherent in data publication. In their stead, these issues have been advanced almost exclusively by computer scientists who are primarily interested in technical problems associated with protecting privacy. Economists should join the discussion, first to determine where to balance privacy protection against data quality—a social choice problem. Furthermore, economists must ensure new privacy models preserve the validity of public data for economic research.Citation
Abowd, John M., Ian M. Schmutte, William N. Sexton, and Lars Vilhuber. 2019. "Why the Economics Profession Must Actively Participate in the Privacy Protection Debate." AEA Papers and Proceedings, 109: 397-402. DOI: 10.1257/pandp.20191106Additional Materials
JEL Classification
- A11 Role of Economics; Role of Economists; Market for Economists
- C80 Data Collection and Data Estimation Methodology; Computer Programs: General
- D71 Social Choice; Clubs; Committees; Associations