Data Privacy and Technology | Harvard University

Where is the line between the benefits of gathering information for public health and personal privacy? What about the balance between security and surveillance? Should data gathered about you be used to personalize the ads you see, or the prices you pay? As a decision-maker, you're constantly moving back and forth on a continuum, weighing the benefits and risks of using personal data.  

Technology isn’t value-neutral. In an age where more technology is incorporated into daily life at an increasing pace, the protection of privacy can often be an afterthought. Data Privacy and Technology will encourage you to think critically about the trade-offs and challenges presented by today’s ever-changing role of technology.

Through real-life examples with industry experts, policy makers, and privacy researchers you’ll explore legal and ethical implications of collecting personal data; understand who’s responsible for protecting personal data; and why antitrust and privacy laws are unable to keep pace with the rapid change in technology. Throughout the course, you’ll explore the risks and rewards of surveillance; examine the future of data collection, usage, and privacy; and the technology of personal data collection.

Privacy is a complex and multifaceted concept and this course aims to help you become a contributing member of privacy-forward communities, business task forces, and data-sharing practices. By the end of the course, you will be a better informed citizen of the Internet, be able to think about the trade-offs around data collection, and be able to lead your organization as it grapples with the interaction between big data and privacy.

Do you agree to enroll in this course? It's time to learn how to balance the utility of a dataset with the privacy of the individuals.