Privacy and Agency: insights and discussion

A term that we heard so many times that you wonder if it does not need a new word. It has to convey urgency and agency, as today it is tied to loss, as if we have lost something already.

We haven’t. Privacy is both defensive, as in a technical sense of the word, as well as a deep human need to create an inner space between a ‘self’ and an outward appearance. The space of inner flow and potentiality. Privacy is not a nice to have, without it there is no wellbeing nor room for human growth. We say ‘a’ self as the 19th and 20th century writings could still assume ‘the’ self. We have to make privacy real and urgent to different generations: Millennials, Gen X, Gen Z and Alpha, as it may mean different things to generations growing up in more and more connectivity.

In this workshop we want to show how different perspectives today are working to keep privacy at the forefront of techno-politics, as in both technological development as well as in creating meaning narratives to show how important privacy is for large scale decision making systems.

The workshop is a mix of short contributions and discussion in order to give input to our pre-standardisation IEEE group. The key term is inter centrality, the centralisation of intelligent infrastructure and de decentralisation of identity (Self Sovereign Identity and ephemeral/disposable identities.

The first speaker is Sophie Stalla-Bourdillon is co-Director Brussels Privacy Hub & University of Southampton (Visiting Prof) will talk about her article The state of pseudonymisation in the EU: Where do we stand today? https://cris.vub.be/ws/portalfiles/portal/121519062/The_State_of_Pseudo_Anonymisation_in_the_EU_Where_do_We_Stand_Today_Data_Protection_Ireland_Volume_18_Issue_2.pdf

Pseudonymisation under the Article 4(5). It is the process by which ‘personal data can no longer be attributed to a specific data subject without the use of additional information, provided that such additional information is kept separately and is subject to technical and organisational measures to ensure that the personal data are not attributed to an identified or identifiable natural person’.

Elena Japundžić is an EU legal expert and a FOSS ally, talking about privacy through legal lens and what should we all, as citizens, be aware of. Can we use hardware to keep our personal data off-grid? Is there a need/market for a ZK hardware, completely off-grid, for personal use? What other solutions do we wish to have in our future?

Mehmet Onur Cevik has been researching neuortech in Mapping neurotech governance. He will touch on new notions of privacy that will arise from these technologies ologies that we have understand in order to make sure they are productive for the individual and the environment.

Neurotechnology is evolving rapidly[1], with applications ranging from clinical treatments for neurological disorders to consumer tools for wellness, productivity, and entertainment. Devices on the market today span from invasive brain implants, to wearables that read and interpret the electrical activity of the brain. Some are certified as medical devices, while others are marketed as lifestyle products, and others still focus solely on data analytics and services.

Rob van Kranenburg will talk about the Project Kenner Initiative that tries to create a 6G phone. We have to be honest. We are entering a territory of hybrid connectivity that is radically transparent. To have agency citizens need Self Sovereign Identity and the possibility to use a separate identity for any service. The Disposable Identity Community https://t.me/+T6YMHcJxH4Iy5LUa

Denis Jaromil Roio has been working in the field of privacy and security as dyne.org and Forkbomb BV. He says: Until process isolation is granted for every execution of zero-knowledge algorithms, privacy-preserving technology won’t protect us from mega-corporations spying on us. In digital identity, zero-knowledge proofs also enable selective disclosure. For instance, consider proving you are over 18 to access a service without needing to show your birthdate or complete ID. The system verifies the age threshold cryptographically, without leaking any extra details. See: https://zenroom.org/?ref=news.dyne.org

Iskander Smit https://www.linkedin.com/in/iskandersmit/

In our Civic Protocol Economies research, we’ve been exploring among others "current-sees"—making visible how value actually flows in communities. Disposable identities might offer a useful lens here—allowing actors and collectives to participate in flows without permanent legibility. Can communities gain the visibility they need to govern themselves, while individuals and groups retain choice over how exposed they are?

https://civicixdproject.com/civicprotocoleconomies/

Mathias Jud

The two artists Christoph Wachter and Mathias Jud developed a community project named “Qaulnet”. In a situation where people are cut off from the internet, they are able to communicate and to form a spontaneous network via free WIFI.

https://everydayrebellion.net/free-internet-communication-qual-net-italian-version/

Karin Lammers

Karin Lammers is an advocate of free and open source software (FOSS) and an independent consultant. She assists FOSS projects such as Ariel OS in the areas of governance, strategy, documentation and community building.

Ariel OS (http://ariel-os.org/) is a library operating system for secure, low-power Internet of Things, written in Rust. It is open source, and created and maintained by researchers and software engineers based in Europe. Ariel OS aims to integrate the best of the embedded Rust ecosystem to provide a seamless, batteries-included experience for microcontroller firmware development. As such, with the software stack provided by Ariel OS, end users remain in full control of their IoT devices.

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