Current & Recent Research at Penn Law
| Author: |
Allen, Anita L. |
| Citation: | UNPOPULAR PRIVACY: WHAT MUST WE HIDE? (Oxford University Press 2011). |
| Date Published: | 2011 |
| Date Posted: | 08/03/2011 |
| Subjects: | Law and Philosophy/Jurisprudence Law, Technology and Communications |
| Keywords: | Philosophy Privacy Law |
| Abstract: | |
| Can the government stick us with privacy we don't want? It can, it does and it may need to do more of it. Privacy is a foundational good, a necessary tool in the liberty-lover's kit for a successful life. A nation committed to personal freedom must be prepared to mandate inalienable, liberty-promoting privacies for its people, whether they eagerly embrace them or not. This book about seclusion, concealment, confidentiality and data-protection draws attention to just such unpopular forms of privacy--privacies disvalued by their intended beneficiaries and targets--and outlines the best reasons for imposing them, and the worst. The book looks at laws designed to keep website operators from collecting personal information from young children, anti-nudity laws that force strippers to wear pasties and thongs, and the myriad employee and professional confidentiality rules--including insider trading laws--that require strict silence about matters whose disclosure could earn us small fortunes. She shows that such laws--and ethical rules of concealment currently strained by trends in media and technology--recognize the extraordinary importance of dignity, reputation, and trust, and help to preserve social, economic and political options throughout a lifetime. | |