The Public Policy Environment of the Privacy-Security Conundrum/Complement

Abstract

Public policy constraints impact deployment of most technology underlying the convergence of digital technologies in telecommunications, e-commerce, and e-government. Networked computers increase the vulnerability of confidential data, transaction processing infrastructure and national security. Compliance regulation imposes complex constrains on data management by government, the private-sector and their personnel. Privacy and security are a balance between individual interests in secrecy/solitude and society’s interests in security, order, and efficiency. This chapter explores the key political, legal, and regulatory methods for resolving conflicts between privacy rights and security methods to encourage convergence success. The “Privacy-Security Conundrum” is framed, then set against the more cross-dependant relationships of a “Privacy-Security Complement.” Security law illustrates that the conundrum-complement dilemma serves to define convergence as constrained and induced by the legal and policy perspectives or privacy, intellectual property, technology transfer, electronic records management, torts, criminal law, fiduciary and contractual duties and professional ethics regulating privacy and security.