Forum Privacy

In modern societies with widespread usage of digital media, private information can be disclosed on many occasions. The co-development of technical possibilities like data mining and genetic diagnostics and political regulation (e.g. data retention, biometric databases, body scanners) on the one hand and individual use of social networking sites, online shopping, or location based services on the other hand establish a tight mesh of information. This enables the ever more encompassing and detailed tracking of individuals’ lives. The Forum Privacy and Self-Determination in a Digital World” considers these questions from an interdisciplinary perspective, bringing together scholars from law, sociology, computer science, psychology, and philosophy.

The sub-project, which is located at the Ethics Centre, examined normative questions in relation to the change of privacy and the possibilities of a self-determined lifestyle in the digital society. The aim of the research project was, in conjunction with the other partners of the Forum Privacy, to critically analyse issues and technologies of the digital change and to develop criteria for the normative evaluation and (improved) design of the new technologies which have an impact on privacy and informational self-determination.