Privacy and Consent in the Digital Age
Professor Fred Cate spoke on legal issues regarding privacy vis‐à‐vis technology and the Internet, including the legal issues regarding the pervasiveness, legality, and enforcement of consent agreements. He defined privacy from a legal point of view and framed important questions regarding privacy, such as “Who should protect privacy?” and “How should the law view data, including its creation, storage, usage, and monetization?”
An International Comparison of Privacy Rights
John Nealon’s lecture illuminated the tradeoffs of treating privacy as a right versus as protecting privacy with laws. He compared and contrasted the general state of affairs in the European Union, United States, and China. Important policy issues of the 2000s were presented with examples that span all three locations, such as automated decision‐making (autonomous cars; CCTV; automated weaponry).
Privacy, Civil Liberties, and the NSA
Rebecca Richards’ lecture framed issues regarding the legal, practical, and political trade‐offs between individual privacy and national security and the challenges of protecting both. She provided insights into government transparency and accountability in the realm of privacy in the 21st century.
Consumer Privacy and Corporate Surveillance
Alan Butler’s lecture centered on privacy issues related to consumer data collection and corporate surveillance. His lecture included a review and assessment of consumer privacy issues that have and are making their way through the courts as well as the issues that are likely to be debated by Congress.