Full Text Available
Note: Clicking the button above will open the full text document at the original institutional repository in a new window.
Privacy as a common good in the age of big data
Thesis (MA)--Stellenbosch University, 2022.
Saved in:
| Main Author: | |
|---|---|
| Other Authors: | |
| Format: | Thesis |
| Language: | en_ZA |
| Published: |
Stellenbosch : Stellenbosch University
2022
|
| Subjects: | |
| Tags: |
No Tags, Be the first to tag this record!
|
| _version_ | 1867613906790252544 |
|---|---|
| access_status_str | Open Access |
| author | Roux, Josephine Anne |
| author2 | De Villiers-Botha, Tanya |
| author_browse | De Villiers-Botha, Tanya Roux, Josephine Anne |
| author_facet | De Villiers-Botha, Tanya Roux, Josephine Anne |
| author_sort | Roux, Josephine Anne |
| collection | Thesis |
| dc_rights_str_mv | Stellenbosch University |
| description | Thesis (MA)--Stellenbosch University, 2022. |
| format | Thesis |
| id | oai:scholar.sun.ac.za:10019.1/124518 |
| institution | Stellenbosch University (South Africa) |
| language | en_ZA |
| last_indexed | 2026-06-10T12:43:35.721Z |
| license_str | Other — see source repository |
| provenance_str_mv | Harvested via OAI-PMH from SUNScholar — Stellenbosch University Repository |
| publishDate | 2022 |
| publishDateRange | 2022 |
| publishDateSort | 2022 |
| publisher | Stellenbosch : Stellenbosch University |
| publisherStr | Stellenbosch : Stellenbosch University |
| record_format | dspace |
| source_str | SUNScholar — Stellenbosch University Repository |
| spelling | oai:scholar.sun.ac.za:10019.1/124518 Privacy as a common good in the age of big data Roux, Josephine Anne De Villiers-Botha, Tanya Stellenbosch University. Faculty of Arts and Social Sciences. Dept. of Philosophy. Big data Political science -- Philosophy Data ethics Privacy Thesis (MA)--Stellenbosch University, 2022. ENGLISH SUMMARY: In this thesis, I support the claim that Big Data poses a significant threat to liberal democracy through its violation of citizens’ privacy and consequently argue that in order to address this threat, it is necessary to re-assess the way that we value privacy in a liberal society. Big Data's role in the erosion of liberal democracy has been increasingly raised in the media and the philosophical literature, but the precise role that violations of privacy play in undermining democracy is not always clearly spelt out. I unpack the claims made in this regard and show that the central issue here is that Big Data threatens democracy because of its unique ability to undermine citizens’ autonomy. I go on to show that it is able to do so thanks to its unprecedented large-scale and consistent invasions of privacy. That is to say, I show how, by invading privacy, Big Data can and does undermine autonomy. And as I will argue, without an autonomous citizenry, liberal democracy cannot thrive. Having made the argument that democracy is under threat because of Big Data’s erosion of autonomy through privacy-invasions, I go on to assess arguments for valuing privacy as a public good. I show the limitations that stem from viewing privacy as a public good, and I conclude that in the Age of Big Data, it is crucial that we view privacy as a common good instead. I argue that the traditional evaluation of privacy as an individual good is a central obstacle in the struggle to address privacyinvasions in the Age of Big Data. Hence, in order to protect our privacy and, ultimately, liberal democracy, we need to reconceive of the value of privacy. AFRIKAANS OPSOMMING: In hierdie tesis onderskraag ek die bewering dat Goortdata ’n beduidende bedreiging vir die liberale demokrasie inhou deurdat dit burgers se privaatheid ondermyn. Verder voer ek aan dat hierdie bedreiging slegs aangespreek kan word indien ons die waarde wat ons in liberale samelewings aan “privaatheid” heg, in heroënskou neem. Alhoewel die rol van Grootdata in die wegkalwe van die demokrasie meer aandag in die media en in die filosofiese literatuur begin geniet, word die presiese rol wat privaatheidsoorskryding hier speel nog nie duidelik uitgestip nie. Ek bestudeer verskeie bewerings wat in hierdie verband gemaak word en wys dat die kern uitgangspunt is dat Grootdata ’n bedreiging vir die demokrasie inhou weens die ongeëwenaarde mate waartoe dit burgers se outonomie kan ondermyn. Ek wys dan dat hierdie vermoë voortspruit uit Grootdata se ongekende, grootskaalse en volgehoue privaatheidsoorskrydende praktyke. Dit is, ek wys hoe Grootdata, deur privaatheid te oorskry, outonomie ondermyn. Ek maak dan verder die argument dat liberale demokrasie nie kan floreer sonder ’n outonome burgery nie. Nadat ek vasgestel het dat Grootdata ’n bedreiging vir die demokrasie inhou deurdat dit, weens die oorskryding van burgers se privaatheid, outonomie ondermyn, evalueer ek argumente wat aanvoer dat privaatheid ’n gemeenskaplike bate is. Ek lig die beperkinge van hierdie benadering tot die waarde van privaatheid uit en kom tot die gevolgtrekking dat die Grootdata-era ons noop om privaatheid eerder as ’n openbare bate te beskou. Dus, ten einde ons privaatheid en, uiteindelik, liberale demokrasie te beskerm, moet ons herbesin oor die waarde van privaatheid. Masters 2022-02-15T08:39:11Z 2022-04-29T09:17:34Z 2022-02-15T08:39:11Z 2022-04-29T09:17:34Z 2022-04 Thesis http://hdl.handle.net/10019.1/124518 en_ZA Stellenbosch University 102 pages : illustrations application/pdf Stellenbosch : Stellenbosch University |
| spellingShingle | Big data Political science -- Philosophy Data ethics Privacy Roux, Josephine Anne Privacy as a common good in the age of big data |
| title | Privacy as a common good in the age of big data |
| title_full | Privacy as a common good in the age of big data |
| title_fullStr | Privacy as a common good in the age of big data |
| title_full_unstemmed | Privacy as a common good in the age of big data |
| title_short | Privacy as a common good in the age of big data |
| title_sort | privacy as a common good in the age of big data |
| topic | Big data Political science -- Philosophy Data ethics Privacy |
| url | http://hdl.handle.net/10019.1/124518 |
| work_keys_str_mv | AT rouxjosephineanne privacyasacommongoodintheageofbigdata |