Re: A simple solution
I think there are some important distinctions. Official data collection results in official secrets. Personal data are classified & improper access governed by the OSA and other penalties, up to or including jail time. With the data collection legislated, access to bulk data are restricted and not for 100's of depts or NGOs to browse during their work or breaks. But there is of course a large element of trust.. And MPs record's should not have been exempted, especially given they're eminently corruptable.
In the private sector, those rules don't apply other than various attempts at data protection legislation, which are largely toothless. Legislators occasionally attempt to fix that, but then there's a lobby representing data harvestors, aggregators and peddlers that object to attempts to restrict their ability to invade and/or monetise our privacy. And when companies do get caught, the penalties are small. There may be some reputational damage, but that doesn't seem to have affected Uber's valuation.
Governments should just take a leaf out of their OSA books and offer jail time to execs at companies that abuse or leak personal information. That may just focus exec's minds, and isn't something that can be expensed or covered by a DOI policy.
Bigger social issue is that companies think it's ok to hoover up & peddle personal information, often without user's informed consent. 'Do no evil' may be a nice mission statement, but history's shown Google's a serial offender when it comes to playing fast and loose with privacy.. So it's more of a guideline, rather than a rule. Don't get caught, and if you do, set your PR team and reputation managers on the case. The execs probably used to read their sister's diaries, so may have a different ethical view regarding people's privacy.
Biting the hand that feeds IT
