This 7 page paper discusses what issues arise from the recent UK government proposals to share public data across departments and with the private sector and gives an opinion on whether or not the government should be allowed to do this. The bibliography cites 6 sources.
Name of Research Paper File: TS14_TENIcard.rtf
Unformatted Sample Text from the Research Paper:
creating databases with information that can be shared across numerous government and potentially private departments. This may have some potential advantages and benefits, but there are also dangers and costs
associated with such a strategy. The potential development of national identity cards and a database of all personal information may be seen
by many as a move towards a big brother state where there restrictions place on freedom and liberty, where it is possible for officials and anyone with access to obtain
many different types of information about an individual, who they are, what they are doing, even what books they like to read or where they do their shopping. Others argue
that it is a necessity, leading to a more efficient administration as well as increasing security in an age where there have been increasingly serious terrorist attacks. The plans of
the government for the single database with information regarding an individual is held is highly controversial and when considering whether this is a good idea and whether is should be
allowed the framework has to be approached from two perspectives, the first is whether the state should hold, or try and collect and hold personal information, the second is whether
or not the system itself is right, with a concentration of data all in a single source and if this will increase the potential for abuse either legally or illegally.
The first consideration is should a state hold a large amount of personal information about an individual. There is little doubt that government bodies already hold a large
amount of data, from the inland revenue with details of jobs, salary and personal demographic data, the national health service has data concerning health issues and family, likewise social services,