Trust and Data Minimisation as Increasing Strategic Advantages

From an Idea to Implementation

Innovation is built on bold ideas to address pressing social challenges. Sometimes that means inventing something entirely new; other times, it is all about applying existing technologies in a new way. But great ideas alone are rarely enough. In the long-term, the crux of innovation becomes less about building something new, but more about building something that people are willing to adopt and use.
Regardless of where an innovation originates, introducing it into society requires careful consideration of the ethical standards that apply. Often times these standards are not a one-size-fits-all but depend on the context and the environment of the innovation. For example, piloting an innovation in a controlled environment presents very different ethical considerations from piloting it in a public or semi-public space. Depending on these contexts, unlocking the value of these technologies have to be balanced out with individuals’ rights and expectations.

Responsible Innovation from Day One

Innovation and regulation can sometimes be seen as opposing forces. It can be a common assumption that the former moves at a faster pace than the latter. The reality is that successful digital innovations benefit from treating legal and ethical considerations as part of the design process, instead of a checkbox that is considered later.
While these legal and ethical considerations may vary depending on the context, some guiding principles remain generally relevant. Among the many principles guiding responsible innovation, in this article, we take a closer look at two that stand out: trust and data minimisation.

Trust: the Foundation of the Digital Age

Commonly used both in daily language and in term of ethics, trust can be remarkably misunderstood or overly generalised. Granted, depending on the context, trust can mean different things. But in the world of ethics, trust refers to a nuanced and multi-dimensional relation between the parties. For example, these
parties could be technology deployers, pilot participants, or end-users. Building trust starts with mutual awareness. Whether the matter at hand concerns security, privacy, or compliance, having sufficient knowledge is the first essential element of fostering trust. Having knowledge gaps, lack of clarity or readability can be some of the factors that can lower sufficient knowledge. Awareness is not a one-time checkmark, but a continuous process. Information also needs to be understood. Explaining how a technology works does not automatically mean people comprehend its implications. Communicating clearly, and in language people can relate to, is as important as providing the information itself.
Next aspect comes in the form of appreciation. In this stage the individual who this information is communicated to would have the agency to weigh on several considerations, such as benefit, risk or impact.
Trust then grows through adoption. Through continuous adoption of certain capabilities, over time the foundation of trust becomes stronger and more well-established. Following this, we are then able to reach the phase where the individual has chosen to trust, with acceptance.
This is why trust should not be viewed as the responsibility of a single stakeholder. Developers, stakeholders, and even end-users all play a part in establishing and maintaining this dynamic relationship.

Data Minimisation: Less is More

On occasion, personal data processing can be an important aspect of fostering or streamlining innovation. At the same time, processing personal data brings legal obligations and ethical responsibilities that cannot be overlooked. For many organisations, these responsibilities could create certain roadblocks in driving the innovation forward. So, what to do?
Under the GDPR, the data minimisation principle requires organisations to collect only the personal data that is genuinely necessary for a clearly defined purpose. At first glance, this approach may seem restrictive. However, in practice, it can become a strategic long-term advantage.

Collecting fewer personal data, would also mean managing less risk. By limiting the amount of personal data collected and retained, organisations can simplify compliance procedures, reduce risks related to cybersecurity, lower storage and operational costs, and strengthen accountability. Moreover, such practices demonstrate clear responsible data practices from the start. Data minimisation principle is one of the deployable items as part of the main trust components such as human agency, privacy, security and digital sovereignty. By encouraging organisations to focus on what truly matters, it for once demonstrates the respect for individuals’ privacy while providing tangible strategic advantages. In doing so, it promotes solutions that are legally compliant, easier to manage, and ultimately, easier to trust.

The ACCOMPLISH Approach

The ACCOMPLISH project explores how compliance activities can be automated to reduce regulatory burdens. Simultaneously, it recognises that responsible innovation refers to more than regulatory compliance. Building trust and using data responsibly are all essential ingredients for creating technologies that society is willing to embrace.

Neither data minimisation or any other trust component deployment can be achieved through a single, on-time action. Both require continuous reflection, monitoring and improvement throughout the respective system, operational, data and legal lifecycles. For ACCOMPLISH, this is the guiding way forward. By exploring smarter ways to automate compliance while keeping ethical and legal principles at the heart of innovation, the project aims to help organisations spend less time navigating complexity, and more time delivering products, systems and services that economy and society are eager to adopt.

This article has been written by ARTHUR for one of our leading European projects ACCOMPLISH: https://www.accomplish-project.eu/the-competitive-edge-of-responsible-innovation-trust-and-data-minimisation-as-increasing-strategic-advantages/