“When we talk about privacy vs. public safety, I can assure you that it is never privacy that wins, nor should it be. But what I reject, is the proposition that privacy must suffer,” insists Dr. Ann Cavoukian in “First Principles”, the inaugural episode of Engage, a new podcast series hosted by Genetec Inc. (“Genetec”), a leading technology provider of unified security, public safety, operations, and business intelligence solutions.
Focused on exploring key industry themes with global thought leaders spanning multiple disciplines, Engage: A Genetec podcast, examines a broad spectrum of safety and security topics, from digital transformation in business, city, and government operations, to vital technology topics including privacy, data sovereignty, and more.
In “First Principles”, Engage hosts Kelly jobs with computer science degree and David Chauvin take on the often-controversial topic of privacy.
“In the world of privacy, Dr. Ann Cavoukian is a formidable force,” said Andrew Elvish, Vice President of Marketing at Genetec, Inc. “While Information and Privacy Commissioner for the province of Ontario, Canada, her work on Privacy by Design sparked a global revolution on how privacy is perceived by putting the onus on providers instead of users. Today, Dr. Cavoukian champions a pragmatic, proactive approach, which she feels is especially important in an age when more personal and behavioral information is being used to track and anticipate our activities – it is an important perspective that resonates within the practice of physical security as much as it does in the wider public.”
During this interview, Dr. Cavoukian who is now Executive Director of the Privacy and Big Data Institute at Ryerson University, talks about the importance of adopting a ‘Privacy by Design’ approach to software. She argues that the old “check the box” model for privacy compliance no longer holds up when considered in light of the type and volume of information being shared. When a software solution is designed from the ground up with privacy in mind, organizations don’t have to choose between protecting the privacy of individuals and their physical security, creating a win/win for the individual and the organization.
Dr. Cavoukian believes that there can be a positive sum between privacy and security. “Get rid of the ‘versus’ and let’s embrace privacy and embed it into the code of information technologies, business practices and networked infrastructure,” she says.
