"Platform Empowers Users to Control Their Personal Data"

Every day millions of us generate valuable digital data for several different reasons pertaining to sustainability, productivity, health improvement, and more. However, we do not have the power to decide how data collected about us is used, posing a significant threat to privacy. Passively-generated mobile phone data such as location is increasingly being collected and shared by various third-party applications, including smart building apps and marketers gathering information on shopping habits. A team of researchers at Cornell University developed and tested a platform called "Ancile," which gives users more control over their personal data. The platform was developed to allow users to specify the type of data they'll release and who will have access to it. Researchers tested Ancile with study participants at Cornell's Ithaca and Cornell Tech Campuses. To identify privacy challenges that emerge in ubiquitous computing applications, the team developed and tested four location-based apps, called BookNearMe, RoamingOfficeHours, GroupStudy, and LocationPredictor. Each of these apps addressed a specific privacy challenge. With Ancil, users could set privacy restrictions in a reactive manner as the way in which information is used, continues to change. The research behind Ancile also gives insight into improving the privacy of those using COVID-19 contact-tracing apps. This article continues to discuss the increased gathering of passively-generated data, the lack of control over the use of this data, and how the Ancile platform will empower individual users to control their personal data.

The Cornell Chronicle reports "Platform Empowers Users to Control Their Personal Data"