Goal of the research project:
In a digital and interconnected world, decisions concerning the handling of private information (e.g., photos, location data, or online behavior) are becoming increasingly complex. The PriVis project is dedicated to the privacy and data sovereignty of end-users of digital services, focusing on technologies that strengthen the transparency of such decision-making environments through visualization methods. In addition to developing innovative solutions for data sovereignty together with the two project partners (see below), ISE focuses on investigating the psychosocial user needs regarding digital privacy.
ISE pursues two specific goals with PriVis: Based on theoretical elaborations and empirical studies, firstly, a detailed theoretical framework for the concepts of data sovereignty and privacy, as well as associated measuring instruments, will be developed. In particular, privacy is considered a construct across multiple levels, encompassing individual, group, and societal dimensions. Through this, PriVis makes an important contribution to the advancement of existing fundamentals of digital privacy and its interdependence among connected individuals.
Secondly, the handling of disclosure decisions concerning private information by individuals, which have implications for their own or others’ data sovereignty and privacy, will be empirically investigated. In particular, it will be examined how transparency mechanisms in the decision-making environment can influence behavior regarding data disclosure. In cooperation with the two project partners, prototypes for so-called “transparency-enhancing technologies” (TETs) will be developed and tested. With this goal, the project integrates into the broader research field of privacy in the digital age and makes valuable research contributions to the data sovereignty of end-users.
Key Information:
Contact:
- Prof. Dr. Alexander Benlian (benlian@ise.tu-…),
- Dr. Anjuli Franz (franz@ise.tu-…)
Project partners: PEASEC, TU Darmstadt (Prof. Dr. Christian Reuter), Fraunhofer IGD (Prof. Dr.-Ing. Jörn Kohlhammer)
Funding: ATHENE – National Research Center for Applied Cybersecurity