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The internet as a data source project for the European Commission is now in full swing. This is a follow-up to a previous project we conducted in 2008 for the Dutch Ministry of Economic Affairs and the Central Bureau of Statistics. At that time, we were way ahead of the curve. This still appears to be the case: apart from some occasional cases at the OECD, no government automates statistical data collection.
This is remarkable, considering that there are already a substantial number of applications available on the market to collect information about individuals or organisations via the internet. This includes well-known portals with statistics on browser market share such as statcounter.com, or sites where internet connection speed can be tested such as compari.tech speed-test and speedtest.net.
Technically, much is already possible. However, legal barriers are much greater, as certain applications such as staffcop.com or spousespysoftware.com go to great lengths in collecting detailed personal information.
An initial exploration of the legal dimensions of automated data collection, carried out by our English partner (University of Bournemouth), shows that the barriers are not as significant as commonly thought. Therefore, not only can much be done, but much is also permissible. Yet, just because something can be done, doesn't mean it should be done. In other words, the moral dimension plays a crucial role in this project.
This is why digital civil rights organisations like Bits of Freedom and Chaos Computer Club have been invited to the upcoming workshop in Brussels. Taking place on 7th April in Brussels, this workshop will discuss the initial research findings with a number of field experts. For more information about this project, contact Robbin te Velde (tevelde@dialogic.nl).