What we do

 Privacy is an “individual’s right to control access to [their] own personal information” (1), and critically, privacy is viewed as human right in the European Union (2).  

 Privacy and perceptions of risks of personal data vary across cultures (3), so it is critical to explore possibly differing perceptions of privacy across the Nordic nations. 

 Privacy is a moving target, where new metrics (i.e.,palm print for identification in hospitals [4]) and new types of personal data (i.e. lifestyle data such as mood or daily eating habits [5]) arise quickly.

 With the adoption of technologies such as AI, IoT, and e-health, citizens and consumers have real concerns of ownership of personal data (i.e., consent and use of personal data in Smart Cities), as well as concerns surrounding surveillance and discrimination (i.e., when AI are used for job hiring decisions, or used for delivery of welfare services). 

 By exploring cultural differences of privacy across the Nordics, we can continue to support the Nordics shared cultural identity (6), while understanding how citizen and consumers perceptions of privacy impact adoption of these technologies. 

  Further technological infrastructure development necessary for Nordic cooperation will see increases in shared data across borders, underscoring the importance of privacy and control of personal data. “Nordic cooperation in research allows us to share data, infrastructure and resources across national borders” (7).