Child-Centered Privacy

This research project looks to build technologies that will empower children to make better-informed decisions that relate to the maintenance of their privacy, by managing the privacy risks that they face on a day to day basis.

Data processors are collecting as much data as they can, about as many things as they can, for reasons that they haven’t yet invented. This data is being analysed, moved, compared, and profiles built to help drive business and income generation. For example, targeted product advertising is where user profiles are built to target individuals and increase the likelihood that those individuals will spend money on those products.

Have you ever read a privacy policy for a product you have used? Do you know what data about yourself you are giving away? Have you ever installed an app on your smartphone/tablet and wondered how they can give this away for free?

This research project will work alongside children and aims to develop technologies that will help children to make better-informed decisions about the risks to their privacy. Participatory design techniques will be used to get children to design technologies that work for them; children will also test and validate these technologies.