The Intersectional Privacy Risks of Law Enforcement Influence and Involvement in Smart City Projects
Organization
Open North
Published
2022
Project Leader(s)
Merlin Chatwin
Summary
Over the last decade there has been concurrent yet unnecessarily disconnected developments in the Canadian discourse around the governance for, and with, data and digital technologies in cities. There has been a growing realization that while cities can certainly benefit immensely from more granular data collection, algorithmic analytics, platform-based tools, or networked systems, the inherent risks necessitate a far greater emphasis on governance policy. Further, a series of public scandals has revealed the degree to which law enforcement has also embraced data technologies, but frequently in secrecy and in contravention of the norms of privacy if not the laws. As the digital transformation of societal systems continues, these dynamics increasingly play out in the same digital infrastructure and data ecosystem — and potentially impact the same residents’ privacy rights. In addition, recent developments in so-called “big data” and “artificial intelligence” systems have called the adequacy of existing privacy rights into question. This debate has entered the public discourse and contributed to an ongoing decline in trust in government use of data and digital technologies. This report explores the issue of data sharing between law enforcement and municipal bodies and the intersectional risks this sharing has on communities already facing systemic harm. Based on interviews with 27 decision makers in law enforcement and municipal government, we outline the ambiguity around data sharing that exists, the heterogeneity in existing governance practices, and detail the calls for reform. On this basis, we recommend a series of expert-driven workshops to chart a more resident-centered, responsible, comprehensive, and future-facing data governance approach.
Project deliverables are available in the following language(s)
English
OPC Funded Project
This project received funding support through the Office of the Privacy Commissioner of Canada’s Contributions Program. The opinions expressed in the summary and report(s) are those of the authors and do not necessarily reflect those of the Office of the Privacy Commissioner of Canada. Summaries have been provided by the project authors. Please note that the projects appear in their language of origin.
Contact Information
Merlin Chatwin
Executive Director
4388 Rue Saint-Denis Suite 200, #216
Montréal, QC H2J 2L1
1-888-750-4980
E-mail: Merlin Chatwin
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