The purpose of this paper is to propose a framework for addressing privacy concerns in a ubiquitous computing. The authors present the "Principle of Minimum Asymmetry" which states that "a privacy-aware system should minimize the asymmetry of information between data owners and data collectors and data users by:
- decreasing the flow of information from data owners to data collectors / users and
- increasing the flow of information from data collectors / users back to data owners."
The goal is to ensure that users understand the types of information that are being collected about them and how this information is being used. The Principle tries to reduce the likelihood that information about users is captured and used without a user's knowledge. The authors suggest two ways to remedy this situation "decrease the flow of information" by anonymizing the information about users that is sent to data collectors or "increase the flow of information to users" by providing explanations to users about what information is being collected and how it will be used.
The authors believe that in order for ubiquitous computing applications to gain social acceptance, users need to have the necessary information to make informed decisions about whether to use an application. This Principle also allows for market, social and legal recourses for violations of privacy.
The authors also introduce Approximate Information Flows (AIF) a model that describes the various actors with respect to collection, management and sharing of personal information. The authors believe that AIF can be utilized to specify socially-compatible privacy objectives, suggest new privacy solution and enable new methods of privacy inspection and certification for ubicomp applications.
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