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privacy

The right of the individual to be free from secret surveillance (by scientific devices or other means) and from the disclosure to unauthorized persons of personal data, as accumulated in computer data banks. Always an issue complicated by considerations of state security, public welfare (in the case of criminal activity), and other factors, it has been rendered more complex by present-day technology.

Computer data

All Western countries now have computerized-data protection. In the USA the Privacy Act 1974 requires that there should be no secret data banks and that agencies handling data must ensure their reliability and prevent misuse (information gained for one purpose must not be used for another). The public must be able to find out what is recorded and how it is used, and be able to correct it. Under the Freedom of Information Act 1967, citizens and organizations have the right to examine unclassified files.

In the USA, many states have laws of privacy to protect citizens from unlawful intrusion by others, especially the news media. There is a working rule that private information is made public only concerning those who have entered public life, such as politicians, entertainers, and athletes.

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