watching the watchers: ipsi research day today


The project I've been working on - my summer position as a research assistant - is in the spotlight today, as two of the IPSI research teams give a public progress report.
IPSI Research Day - Proportionate Digital ID + Video Surveillance
Sponsor: Identity Privacy and Security Institute (IPSI)

This is a free, open, public workshop. . . . The focus of this year's IPSI Research Day is on two research projects dealing respectively with:

* an experimental, minimally disclosing digital ID wallet we refer to as Proportionate ID

* a study of private sector video surveillance installations and signage in relation to PIPEDA compliance we refer to as Smart Private Eyes

Both projects have been funded by the federal Office of the Privacy Commissioner. For further details, see the links below.

This workshop is intended to present provocative works in progress and promote lively discussion reflecting a variety of perspectives around contemporary technological design and policy development issues.
The portion I'm involved with is Smart Private Eyes. We - the public - are being watched everywhere, and despite laws governing access to information about this surveillance, we're still largely in the dark about it. The watchers hold most of the cards; this project is an attempt to correct the balance.

On a personal note, it's been an interesting challenge to prepare for a Monday presentation while working on my day-job all weekend, with people accustomed to doing everything at the last minute! Fortunately for me, my fieldwork partner is a terrific young woman, an undergraduate, which means (among other things) that she can stay up late doing all kinds of work long after I've bitten the dust.

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