Digital Earth and data cities

Today’s smart cities rely on electronic networks and are planned with data from space, but how do people fit into this new digital age?

Why data is king

The more people use Facebook or Google, the more data they collect, and the more valuable the platforms become for both consumers and advertisers, but their ever greater power also raises issues of public concern.

The encryption deal done, but more work is needed

Australia has a strong history of bipartisanship on national security issues and is much stronger for it. This tradition has held, just about, through the debate on data encryption, but much still remains to be done.

Are tech companies using data in more ethical ways?

Technology firms generate their huge profits from the vast amounts of data they harvest from their users, so have they really changed their ways to protect user data from abuse in the light of recent scandals? New research suggests that while their rhetoric has changed, the reality has not.

The promise and problems of ‘big data’ in official statistics

Digital technologies put an abundance of data at our fingertips, but we must ensure questions of what should, and should not, be measured are answered before we use them in official statistics.

Data rights will empower consumers and business innovation

New data rights will help Australian customers and SMEs derive value from the information gathered on them and encourage the innovation required to boost productivity and wages.

University panel ponders the use of student data

A panel of professionals, academics and students at UNSW Sydney has discussed some tricky ethical questions about how universities handle student data.

Developing data rights for all Australians

It is time to examine the strengths and limitations of the Australian approach to data security and what other structures might be required to protect consumers in an ever more data-centric economy.

Rethinking our approach to open-source data

Open-source data is accessible to anyone with an internet connection. Where should the government draw the line between opening data to the public and protecting it for reasons of national security?

Welcome to the new dark age

In a wide-ranging investigation of diverse fields from aviation to social media, the pharmaceutical industry and climate science, James Bridle argues that our data-driven culture threaten our survival as a species.

Who should own our research data?

We generate vast amounts of information through mobile phones and social media. This could be a huge resource for researchers, as well as advertisers, but who should own this information?

Your chance to suggest topics for the 2021 census

The Australian Bureau of Statistics wants your help to decide which information to gather in the next Census.