Data privacy was important in 2021 and chances are it will remain on top of the mind this year as well. Heck, we would go one step further to predict it will be one of the most important questions in the years to come, with new technologies and trends — such as the metaverse — bringing along a new set of challenges.
To that end, we bring you what we think will be the key online privacy trends this year and beyond. Read on for details…
1. More privacy regulations
In 2018, the EU enacted the General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR), requiring businesses to follow specific compliance rules that cover the ways the user data is stored, deleted and even transferred to third parties.
Across the pond, the California Consumer Privacy Act (CCPA) was enacted to give consumers more control over the personal information that businesses collect about them. California was just the first (and arguably the most important) state to do so, with Alaska, Florida, Indiana, Maryland, Massachusetts, Minnesota, New Jersey, New York, North Carolina, Ohio and Washington also enacting their own privacy bills.
Virginia and Colorado, on their end, will have their privacy laws going into effect in 2023. Meanwhile, there are ongoing discussions of federal privacy legislation that will continue this year, but likely won’t go into effect until 2023 or 2024.
And we expect to see other countries around the world introducing their own privacy laws, as well.
2. Data privacy experts will be in demand
With more privacy regulations being enacted, organizations will continue to feel the pressure to employ privacy-centric professionals in 2022. In that sense, we expect to see many companies adding a position of a data privacy officer or chief privacy officer. And that, likely, won’t be the end, with many organizations hiring more people to fulfill their privacy needs.
Since many companies these days collect all kinds of data on their (potential) customers, we could see entire privacy-focused units popping up. Or, we may see data privacy experts spread across the organizational structure, supporting various Big Data efforts of the company.
3. Privacy and security may not work together
Although we as users tend to see privacy and security as two sides of the same coin, in the organizational structure these don’t have to be a part of the same unit.
As noted above, privacy experts may be spread across the organization to provide their inputs at all touchpoints where user data is collected or managed. On the other hand, security teams tend to be a part of the admin staff and don’t necessarily care about privacy challenges. Sure, their number one task is to keep the data secure, but the nuances of the type and nature of that data is not something they may be concerned about.
The (unfortunate) part where privacy and security teams will collaborate is during the ever-popular ransomware attacks. Should something like this happen, it will be the privacy experts who will have to be involved in order to protect the users’ data — and consequently the company from being fined by the authorities.
4. Privacy will remain top of mind in 2022 (and beyond?)
This will be the year of Metaverse which alongside fancy new interfaces and new opportunities, brings along new challenges. Privacy advocates will — and are already — warning us about potential dangers, but so far no one wants to stop the upcoming (r)evolution.
Nevertheless, we are sure that some lessons are learned from the Facebook – Cambridge Analytica scandal and that this time round, legislators will be listening more carefully. Still, it is hard to imagine any new Metaverse-specific privacy law being enacted during 2022. Rather, we’ll have to wait for another year or longer.
Additionally, privacy advocates and experts will be looking at other companies, many of which have started collecting user data in the last few years. From where we stand, it’s like that every major company these days is in the “data business.” While that could prove beneficial to their bottom line, it (again) raises some privacy concerns — especially among the companies that are not known for their tech expertise.
Overall, we expect 2022 to be yet another interesting year. We just hope that the “interesting part” has little to do with our data being (yet again?) used against us.