Large scale databases are nowadays used in the areas of e-health, youth care, public transport and customer profiles, and in many more areas. Databases offer us unprecedented possibilities for storing, processing and analysing data. But their use is not free of risks. Do databases do what they are supposed to do? What about the security of all that information? And how can people exercise control over information about them?
The project Databases on Display examines the possibilities and limitations of the use of large scale databases. It focuses on the complex dynamics between the design of a database, the purposes it must serve, and the risks involved in the use of it. It does so by comparing case studies on the electronic health record, the electronic child record, the public transport chip card, municipal personal records, internet customer profiles and the Schengen Information System. On basis of the case studies policy recommendations are formulated.
The report Databases was published in Dutch on 17 November 2010. A translation Databases – The promises of ICT, the hunger for information, and digital autonomy was published early 2012, together with a Research Brief which gives an overview of the main findings.
