Component-Based Development: Issues of Data Protection

Abstract

This chapter focuses on the issues raised by component-based development in the light of new data protection legislation recently introduced in the European Union. Component-based development has been proposed as a software engineering approach that can enable the development of flexible and evolutionary systems. The approach aims at the dynamic composition of information systems from pre-fabricated heterogeneous software components. The integration of components, however, potentially creates ethical issues as data need to be exchanged without the users or developers knowing which components will use what data and when. Our discussion unveils a complex ethical debate with important implications for data controllers and information systems developers.