Reply to post: Re: Get your tin foil hat on!

'Biggest data grab' in NHS history stuffs GP records in a central store for 'research' – and the time to opt out is now

logicalextreme

Re: Get your tin foil hat on!

I'm actually of the opinion that everybody's medical data should be available at full granularity to anybody in the name of the greater good, and for myself I'm not fussed about anonymisation at all — I'm open about everything with medical professionals, friends, colleagues and strangers alike.

However the right to privacy trumps that. My mindset's something that's specifically mentioned in NHS training on these matters, but the fact that people own their data and are entitled to privacy always comes first, so my utopian fever dream doesn't matter.

As pointed out elsewhere, it's pretty much impossible to guarantee that you've irreversibly anonymised personal data. You can attempt to mitigate it, but something will always slip through the net — even without personal demographic data, there are instances where a postcode alone can be used to identify someone. There are probably instances where the postcode area can be used, and there are probably islands with a population of 1 where other address details would give it away. Throw some personal demographic or medical data in there and you haven't got a chance — it may be illegal/unlawful/a breach of contract to attempt to deanonymise data, but that doesn't mean it won't be done. The only sane option is to give people the choice, which is not what's happening here.

I'm torn on whether to opt out because I truly believe that pulling healthcare provision and studies out of the dark ages will accelerate humanity's wellbeing at a rate we haven't seen before, but I'm cynical enough to question the motives behind this particular project and I wonder whether the benefits (to healthcare knowledge) truly outweigh the risks (to, e.g., our fairly-socialised healthcare system).

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