Balancing privacy rights and surveillance analytics: a decision process guide

Abstract

The right to privacy has been discussed by scholars in multiple disciplines, yet privacy issues are increasing due to technological advances and lower costs for organisations to adopt smart surveillance. Given the potential for misuse, it seems prudent for stakeholders to critically evaluate Surveillance Analytics (SA) innovations. To assist in balancing the issues arising from SA adoption and the implications for privacy, we review key terms and ethical frameworks. Further, we prescribe a two-by-two Surveillance, Privacy, and Ethical Decision (SPED) Process Guide. SPED recommends the use of one or more of three ethical frameworks, Consequence, Duty, and Virtue. The vertical axis in the SPED matrix is the sophistication of an organisation’s SA and the horizontal axis is an assessment of the current privacy level and the rights afforded to the target(s) of surveillance. The proposed decision process guide can assist senior managers and technologists in making decisions about adopting SA.