Somedays I wonder if “responsible technology and data” is the application of the ‘golden rule’ to data and technology.

The golden rule is found in many religions and cultures. I grew up with the version that goes “Do onto others as you would have done to you.”

So to responsible data. Responsible data has two columns – a technical techie column and a human column. In our work and thinking, we tend to focus on column one much more than column two.

Column One – The Techie bit

Data protection, security, privacy, classification, risk, combining, breaches, retention, destruction, and so on

Column Two – The human bit

Purpose, access, accountability, awareness, consent, bias, governance, sharing, and so on

One aspect of the golden rule is to remind us we are human. And that others are human too. Therefore we need to remember this in our work. So if we are annoyed that tech companies share our data with marketers who then target us. We should think twice before we share data about others to someone else.

Perhaps this is too simplistic, but perhaps it adds a new angle sparking insight. Do onto others as you would have done to you.

Photo by Sandrachile .