riswform-ga,
I will break the Answer to your Question into two main parts: one on
the definition of “personal information,” and the other on the
purposes of defining it. These discussions will be within the context
of your assignment for "Contemporary Issues
and Ethics in Information Technology and Systems". I will also provide
supporting links.
What is “personal information”? Personal information is information
relating to a specific individual which distinguishes that individual
from others. The most basic personal information is name (last, first,
and middle or middle initial), street address (which includes street
address, unit #, city, state, country and zip or postal code with zip
extension if applicable) (and mailing address if it differs from the
physical address), telephone numbers (home and/or mobile, i.e.
“cellular”) and e-mail address (or addresses if the person has more
than one). A person’s citizenship, marital status and number of
children may also be related to this type of personal identification.
This basic information, if known, allows that person to be contacted
for whatever reason.
Beyond this basic level of personal information is a deeper, more
sensitive level relating financial histories. The lynchpin of this
information (in the U.S.) is the social security number (SSN), or
“Taxpayer ID Number.” Besides the SSN, other types of personal
information on this level include the person’s credit card numbers,
and any other financial account numbers, such as bank account numbers.
Yet another level of personal information revolves around “histories,”
such as credit reports, consumer loan reports, mortgage records and
student loan history. Also, whether or not the person is a home-owner.
Past address histories (i.e., all addresses where the person lived for
the last 10 years) are also considered personal information. Also,
employment histories, (such as name of company, dates worked and
salary) are personal information.
Another area of personal information is that of criminal history and
driving (DMV) records. Records of any misdemeanors or felonies,
sometimes even traffic infractions or even if the person was ever
charged with such a crime, is information that is worth something to
someone at some time. DMV information such as what states the person
has or has had a driver license or ID in, whether or not their driver
license is valid, and their current and past vehicle registration
information, including make and model.
Also, educational background, such as degrees held or not held
(verification of degrees), specific schools attended, and even GPA is
another area of personal information.
The other major area of personal information is that of medical
history. Any diagnosed medical conditions (i.e. diabetes), whether the
person is a smoker, drug user or alcoholic is all medical information
that is typically verified by insurance companies.
Okay, we’ve covered the fundamental types of personal information. As
you can see, this basic information which many of us take for granted
is quite serious in terms of being able to paint a picture of a person
you don’t even know. Now, let’s move on to the purposes of defining
this information. Furthermore, most or all of this information is
available on the internet or WWW to someone. Different states have
different laws pertaining to different types of information, such as
DMV, criminal, educational, medical and financial, but there is always
someone who has legal access to it.
The main purpose of defining personal information is to be able to
establish laws and policies governing its use. With the widespread use
of the world wide web, all major companies and corporations now have
what is known as a “Privacy Policy” in order to deal with the legal
ramifications of handling personal information of clients, potential
clients and business partners. The privacy policies state explicitly
what type of info they collect or do not collect or might collect, and
for what purposes—indeed, note that searching for “personal
information” on Google takes you to many corporate privacy policies on
the first page of search results, including IBM’s Privacy Policy,
which is the #1 search result returned (which you go to directly if
you click the “I’m Feeling Lucky” Google button after typing keywords
“privacy policy” into the search box. Let’s look at IBM’s “privacy
practices on the web”:
[http://www.ibm.com/privacy/us/ ].
You should read this page in its entirety in preparation for your
report, as it represents contemporary U.S. corporate policy towards
personal information. Note the following quote from their “Personal
Information” section on this page:
“You may choose to give us personal information in a variety of
situations. For example, you may want to give us information, such as
your name and address or e-mail id, to correspond with you, to process
an order, or to provide you with a subscription. You may give us your
credit card details to buy something from us or a description of your
education and work experience in connection with a job opening at IBM
that you wish to be considered for.”
This is a concise run-down on the majority of types of personal
information companies collect, and their purpose.
From the “Using and Sharing Personal Information” section from the
same IBM page:
“The following paragraphs describe in more detail how IBM may use your
personal information and with whom we may share it. Depending on the
type of IBM Web site you are visiting, one or more of the paragraphs
may apply. For example, if you order a product from an IBM Web site,
your information will be handled as described in such paragraphs as
Fulfilling Your Transaction Request and Marketing Use.”
I reiterate that you should read this page
[http://www.ibm.com/privacy/us/ ] in its entirety, as well as some
other corporate privacy policy pages. Here’s a link to the Intel
Corporation’s privacy policy:
[http://www.intel.com/sites/corporate/privacy.htm ].
An excerpt from this Intel page:
“We will only use your personal information in the ways specified when
it was collected. We will not subsequently change the way in which we
use your personal information, unless you consent to the new usage.”
I’m going to post these discussions as an Answer to your Question. If
there is still something you are not clear about, or if there is
something I’ve written which you do not understand, please don’t
hesitate to ask for Clarification to this Answer.
Below I will list some search terms which will lead you to more
resources on the subject of personal information:
Google search strategy:
Keywords,
“personal information”:
://www.google.com/search?hl=en&ie=UTF-8&oe=UTF-8&q=personal+information&btnG=Google+Search
,
“personal information legislation”:
://www.google.com/search?hl=en&lr=&ie=UTF-8&oe=UTF-8&safe=off&q=personal+information+legislation&btnG=Google+Search
,
“personal information laws”:
://www.google.com/search?hl=en&lr=&ie=UTF-8&oe=UTF-8&safe=off&q=personal+information+laws&btnG=Google+Search
,
“personal information uses”:
://www.google.com/search?hl=en&lr=&ie=UTF-8&oe=UTF-8&safe=off&q=personal+information+uses
“personal information ethics”:
://www.google.com/search?hl=en&lr=&ie=UTF-8&oe=UTF-8&safe=off&q=personal+information+ethics&btnG=Google+Search
Good luck on your assignment!
Sincerely,
omniscientbeing-ga
Google Answers Researcher |
