The New Ethics Of Big Data – Kenneth Cukier, The Economist

The moral dimension of data is typically associated with privacy, and the fear of misuse or accidental disclosure. But in an age of big data, this thinking is archaic and backwards.

Big data techniques are now so powerful that data-scientists and businesses actually have a moral imperative to apply data to solve the world’s challenges – not to use big data would create greater harm. In areas as diverse as healthcare and humanitarian crises, over-bearing rules block the benefits. Instead, we need a sensible balance in favour of harnessing big data to improve the world.

About Kenneth Cukier

Kenneth Cukier is the Data Editor of The Economist in London and the co-author of the award-winning book “Big Data: A Revolution That Will Transform How We Live, Work, and Think” with Viktor Mayer-Schönberger in 2013, a New York Times Bestseller translated into 20 languages. He is a regular commentator on BBC, CNN, and NPR, and a member of the World Economic Forum’s council on data-driven development. In 2002-04, Mr. Cukier was a research fellow at Harvard’s Kennedy School of Government. He is a board director of International Bridges to Justice and a member of the Council on Foreign Relations.