Privacy and Data Protection of the future – the oil of the 2020s

In the current globalized and interconnected market, the wise management of (personal) data is one of the key factors for the success of an enterprise. Incredible resources lie silent between the folds of personal information. While new technologies, data analytics software and AI are more and more lustful for information and data to be fed with, the current EU legal framework (led by the notorious General Data Protection Regulation, “GDPR”) dictates a number of entangled and scalable provisions. In particular, the newly-introduced accountability principle, as well as the general risk-based approach and the privacy-by-design principle of the EU GDPR have paved the way for the rising of new models of privacy and data protection compliance. The latter, instead of consisting in a “zero-sum” game, can be shaped in order to achieve both compliance AND added value. The ability of software designers and IT experts in embedding privacy and data protection principles right within the code will more and more play a paramount role in defining successful and ethical business models.
Finally, considering the raising awareness in the public of the risks for their privacy and data, it should not be underestimated how the “privacy-enhanced” nature of a good or software will become more and more an incredible commercial element in marketing initiatives.