Data protection forum, tomorrow

Monday 10 October 2022

The Office of the Data Protection Authority is supporting the inaugural conference of the newly launched Channel Islands Data Protection Forum, due to be held in Guernsey tomorrow.

It will be taking place on 11 October at Les Cotils from 08:30 until 17:00.

Bailiwick Data Protection Commissioner Emma Martins will be giving a talk about 'Why regulation doesn’t work and what we all need to do about it' during the morning session.

Later in the afternoon she will join panelists from Gibraltar and the Isle of Man to discuss 'What is trust when it comes to data?'

The Commissioner said she feels very strongly about supporting the conference: “Data affects us all, every minute of every day. The way in which we engage with the opportunities and risks is impacted by law, but it also goes to the heart of what it is to be human and is therefore something that goes way beyond legislation.

"In embedding a culture that recognises the huge impact that modern data processing activities has on us can ensure that such activities have human values at their heart. The most effective laws are those that stem from those values because they are the laws that we engage with and comply with, almost without thinking.

"That should be our aim with data protection – moving it away from conversations about anonymous rows of ones and zeros, to conversations about ensuring each one of us has information, control and dignity in respect of how our private information is collected, used and disclosed. In our session, we want to explore the role we can all play in shifting perspectives to reduce harms and encourage ethical as well as legal data use.”

Organised by the Channel Islands Information Security Forum (CIISF) based in Jersey, the event is part of Cyber Security Awareness Month, a global initiative to highlight online risks and promote safer practices and policies at home and at work.