Introduction

The right to privacy is an element of various legal traditions to restrain governmental and

private actions that threaten the privacy of individuals.[1][2] Over 150 national constitutions
mention the right to privacy.[3]

.
Private sector actors could also threaten the right to privacy. Increasingly, questions have arisen
about the use of personal data for targeted advertising, sharing data with external parties and
reusing personal data within big data by large technology giants, such
as Facebook, Google, Apple and Amazon. These concerns have been strengthened by scandals,
revealing that the psychographic company Cambridge Analytica was using personal data,
illegitimately obtained through Facebook, to manipulate and influence large groups of people,
including during the 2016 US Presidential elections.
Definitions
The right to privacy is our right to keep a domain around us, which includes all those things that
are part of us, such as our body, home, property, thoughts, feelings, secrets and identity. The
right to privacy gives us the ability to choose which parts in this domain can be accessed by
others, and to control the extent, manner and timing of the use of those parts we choose to
disclose.

An individual right[edit]
Alan Westin believes that new technologies alter the balance between privacy and disclosure,
and that privacy rights may limit government surveillance to protect democratic processes.
Westin defines privacy as "the claim of individuals, groups, or institutions to determine for
themselves when, how, and to what extent information about them is communicated to others".
Westin describes four states of privacy: solitude, intimacy, anonymity, reserve. These states must
balance participation against norms:
Each individual is continually engaged in a personal adjustment process in which he balances the
desire for privacy with the desire for disclosure and communication of himself to others, in light
of the environmental conditions and social norms set by the society in which he lives
A collective value and a human right[edit]
There have been attempts to reframe privacy as a fundamental human right, whose social value is
an essential component in the functioning of democratic societies. [11] Amitai Etzioni suggests
a communitarian approach to privacy. This requires a shared moral culture for establishing social
order.[12] Etzioni believes that "[p]rivacy is merely one good among many others",[13] and that
technological effects depend on community accountability and oversight. He claims that privacy
laws only increase government surveillance.[14]
Priscilla Regan believes that individual concepts of privacy have failed philosophically and in
policy. She supports a social value of privacy with three dimensions: shared perceptions, public
values, and collective components. Shared ideas about privacy allows freedom of conscience and
diversity in thought. Public values guarantee democratic participation, including freedoms of
speech and association, and limits government power. Collective elements describe privacy as
collective good that cannot be divided. Regan's goal is to strengthen privacy claims in policy
making: "if we did recognize the collective or public-good value of privacy, as well as the
common and public value of privacy, those advocating privacy protections would have a stronger
basis upon which to argue for its protection".[15]
Universal Declaration of Human Rights[edit]
A right to privacy is explicitly stated under Article 12 of the 1948 Universal Declaration of
Human Rights:
No one shall be subjected to arbitrary interference with his privacy, family, home or
correspondence, nor to attacks upon his honor and reputation. Everyone has the right to the
protection of the law against such interference or attacks.

Journalism
It is often claimed, particularly by those in the eye of the media, that their right to privacy is
violated when information about their private lives is reported in the press. The point of view of
the press, however, is that the general public have a right to know personal information about
those with status as a public figure. This distinction is encoded in most legal traditions as an
element of freedom of speech.

Privacy Laws & Business collects information

Privacy Laws & Business collects information from visitors to the website in a number of
different ways, both directly and indirectly. Privacy Laws & Business uses Google Analytics for
statistical analysis, for example, to evaluate interest in the Privacy Laws & Business website. In
the information Google Analytics can collect includes:
 Time of visit, pages visited, and time spent on each page of the webpages
 Referring site details (such as the URI a user came through to arrive at this site)
 Type of web browser
 Type of operating system (OS)
 Flash version, JavaScript support, screen resolution, and screen color processing ability
 Network location and IP address.
Privacy Laws & Business collects email addresses and other contact details which visitors
provide to receive information such as the News updates.
The information we collect about website visitors is used for the following purposes, to:
 respond to queries or requests to be contacted
 identify registered users and administer user accounts
 fulfil orders where appropriate
 collate statistical information about the use of the Privacy Laws & Business website
 develop and improve our website and the services offered by Privacy Laws & Business
 contact visitors with information about services from Privacy Laws & Business and other
advertisers, unless visitors have indicated that they do not want to be contacted.
Sharing data with external parties
Privacy Laws & Business does not rent or sell your details to third parties.
There may be times where it is necessary to share your details with other organisations for
specific purposes. For example, we may share some of your information with a venue hosting
one of our events to inform them of your dietary requirements. In this instance, we would make
it clear that the event is being held at a hotel or conference centre, for example, before asking
you to submit your information. 
We may also disclose your personal information to our service providers as required for the
provision of our services. Like most organisations, Privacy Laws & Business uses service
providers to run our website and to manage our IT systems, email distribution and printing.
Some of these companies may be located in countries outside Europe. For these
services, Privacy Laws & Business works within the framework of Data Protection Policies of
the service providers to ensure the personal information they handle is kept secure. Links to all
service providers’ privacy policies are below. International transfers will be subject to the
contractual terms approved by the European Commission, Binding Corporate Rules or the EU-
US Privacy Shield.
Security
Privacy Laws & Business is committed to protecting the security of your personal information
and has taken measures to ensure an adequate level of security for the personal information
collected through our website and held in our other systems.
If you choose to pay using a payment card on the website, your details are protected by Secure
Socket Layer (SSL) encryption. The card payment service is provided for us by Barclaycard and
Braintree. Privacy Laws & Business does not collect or store your credit card details when you
submit them via the website or by telephone or by any other method of communication
Links
The website contains links to other sites which are unrelated to Privacy Laws & Business. This
includes links to our pages on the following social media sites:
• LinkedIn - https://www.linkedin.com/legal/privacy-policy  
• Twitter - https://twitter.com/en/privacy  
• YouTube - https://policies.google.com/privacy  
• Facebook - https://www.facebook.com/privacy/explanation  
This privacy policy does not apply to these sites nor are we responsible for the content and
practices of these websites.
 
Changes
This privacy policy was last updated on 24 May 2018. If we decide to update this privacy policy,
the changes will be posted here.
 
Your rights

Marketing
When you register on the site, you are given the choice about whether or not you wish to receive
communications from Privacy Laws & Business. You can change your communication
preferences at any time by logging in and going to Account Details in My Account Profile. You
can also opt out at any time (including opting out of marketing profiling) by clicking on the
unsubscribe link in our emails or contacting us at the address below.
Access and Correction
You have the right to access the information held about you by Privacy Laws & Business and,
where necessary, to have it amended if it is inaccurate or out of date. We may need to ask for
proof of your identity before we can respond to your request. We plan to fulfil your request
within 20 days.
Other Rights
You may also have other rights in relation to the personal information held about you by Privacy
Laws & Business (subject to the provisions of applicable law):
 A right to request that your personal information is deleted or marked for suppression; 
 A right to object to or restrict the processing of your personal information;
 Where you have consented to the use of your personal information (e.g. by providing it
voluntarily), the right to withdraw your consent.
To exercise your rights, or if you have a question about your personal information or would like
to discuss any aspect of this privacy policy, please contact:
Data Protection Manager (if by e-mail, in the subject line)
Privacy Organizations and Initiatives
Find out how some organizations are fighting to protect your right to privacy, even as technology
becomes steadily more invasive. Guidelines for privacy are still not defined or protected. For
consumers to feel secure in using the Internet and other technologies while protecting who they
are from prying eyes, corporations and governments must find a mixture of government and
corporate compromise that will ensure we remain anonymous in an ever more connected world.
The consumer on his own stands no chance of defending his own privacy needs. The lack of
power by the individual consumer has given rise to a number of organizations that should lessen
the burden of fighting the "forces of evil" that would take away all our privacy rights. "Forces of
evil" might be a strong term,

Privacy Organizations
A lack of government intervention in protecting consumer privacy rights has caused grassroots
efforts to spring up to address the void in privacy organizations. Publicly funded nonprofit
organizations have taken on the challenge of fighting for consumer privacy rights. The following
sections discuss several of the key players when it comes to organizations taking on the battle
against business and government threats to your privacy.

Online Privacy Alliance

http://www.privacyalliance.org

The Online Privacy Alliance (OPA) is a group of corporations and associations that attempts to
promote online privacy initiatives. The OPA is in favor of self-regulation of privacy concerns
and less government involvement. The mission of the alliance is stated as follows:

"The Alliance will:

 identify and advance effective online privacy policies across the private sector
 support and foster the development and use of self-regulatory enforcement
mechanisms and activities, as well as user empowerment technology tools, designed to
protect individuals' privacy
 support compliance with and strong enforcement of applicable laws and
regulations
 support and foster the development and use of practices and policies that protect
the privacy of children
 promote broad awareness of and participation in Alliance initiatives by
businesses, non-profits, policy makers, and consumers
 seek input and support for Alliance initiatives from consumer, business,
academic, advocacy and other organizations that share its commitment to privacy
protection."

Several of its larger members include IBM, Microsoft, Verizon, The American Institute of
Certified Public Accounts, and Sun Microsystems. The OPA reports on privacy news and
provides resources for companies and consumers to learn more about privacy issues. The OPA
has set up guidelines for defining a privacy policy that companies can use and a framework for
enforcing self-regulation. The guidelines have become an industry framework for the creation of
a privacy policy.

BBBOnline
http://www.bbbonline.org

BBBOnline is a subsidiary of the Council of Better Business Bureaus. Its mission is to "promote
trust and confidence on the Internet through the BBBOnline Reliability and BBBOnline Privacy
programs." BBBOnline has three certification programs called the Reliability Seal Program, Kids
Privacy Seal Program, and Privacy Seal Program. A Web site can get these seals to show that
they promote privacy initiatives and give consumers some form of confidence that the site is
trustworthy. This is a self- regulatory program for Web site

The Kids Privacy Seal Program is used by a Web site to show that it is in compliance with the
Children's Online Privacy Protection Act (COPPA). This law requires all businesses with any
part of their Web sites (or online services) directed at children under the age of 13 or Web sites
(or online services) that collect personally identifiable information from visitors actually known
to be under the age of 13 to follow specific guidelines. These requirements to get this seal are
based on the guidelines of the Council of Better Business Bureaus' Children's Advertising
Review Unit (CARU), the industry standards suggested by the Online Privacy Alliance, and the
Children's Online Privacy Protection Act.

Several of the criteria required to get this seal include

 The Web site must obtain parental consent before any personally identifiable information
can be collected, used, or disclosed.
 The Web site must obtain parental consent before children are allowed to post or
communicate directly with others.
 The Web site must provide warnings and explanations in easy-to-understand language.
 The Web site must avoid collecting more information than necessary when offering
children's games and activities.
 The Web site must be careful in the way it provides hyperlinks.
 The Web site must follow strict rules when sending e-mail.
 The Web site must provide reasonable access to collected information.

Privacy International
http://www.privacyinternational.org

Privacy International (PI) is a human rights group formed in 1990 as a watchdog on surveillance
by governments and corporations. It is based in London, England, and has an office in
Washington, D.C. PI has conducted campaigns throughout the world on issues ranging from
wiretapping and national security activities, to ID cards, video surveillance, data matching,
police information systems, and medical privacy. This information portal does not have any
authority or government powers and serves only as a consumer education site.

Several initiatives that PI has recently conducted include the following:

  International Privacy Survey—Reviews the state of privacy in more than 50 countries
of privacy issues including, data protection, telephone tapping, genetic databases, ID
systems, and freedom of information laws.
 Project Compliance—Monitors companies' compliance with the EU Data Protection and
the U.S./EU negotiations on Safe Harbor.
 Big Brother Awards—"Awards" are given to the companies, government agencies, and
individuals that have most directly undercut privacy.

Junkbusters
http://www.junkbusters.com

This site provides a great deal of information about removing yourself from mass mailing and e-
mailing lists. The site mission is "to get rid of any junk mail, telemarketing calls, junk faxes, junk
pages, junk e-mail, unwanted banner ads, and any other solicitations" you do not want. As we
have seen so far, this is a major undertaking. The site provides educational information on such
things as cookies, Web bugs, and how to reply to marketers to get your name off mailing lists.

Business, Privacy and Human Rights: 5 Steps Every Company Should Take
Given these challenges, what can business do to promote the right to privacy of their customers
and employees when local laws limit and in some cases directly prohibit the realization of the
right?

1. Comply with International Law to the largest extend possible by seeking to understand
the most rights-compatible interpretation of the law and insisting on due process.
2. Develop management systems to help in determining which circumstances should
compel the company to provide government access to customer and employee data.
3. Inform stakeholders of potential risks by providing appropriate notification of the
potential effects of collecting information and ensuring that customers and employees are given
the choice of whether or not to disclose with their information.
4. Avoid unnecessary collection and processing of information by limiting data collected
to only those items absolutely necessary.
5. Use leverage to push for greater legal protections for customer and employee data
privacy either independently, through industry collaborations such as the Global Network
Initiative, or through home country foreign offices if operating internationally.
Businesses and human rights activists alike should applaud the decision of the Supreme Court
and push for further alignment between local laws and international human rights standards. In
the meantime, businesses concerned about the privacy of their customer and employee data
should exercise heightened due diligence so as to not become complicit in illegitimate
government conduct and infringements on the human right to privacy.