Data Ownership
The concept of having property-like rights over data you create or that pertains to you.
Also known as: Data rights, Data property, Information ownership
Category: Concepts
Tags: privacy, data, rights, ethics, governance
Explanation
Data ownership is the concept that individuals or entities should have property-like rights over data - particularly data they create or that pertains to them. It's a contested concept because data differs from physical property: it can be copied infinitely, multiple parties can 'use' the same data simultaneously, and determining who 'owns' derived or aggregated data is complex. Perspectives on data ownership: individual rights view (my data belongs to me), creator rights view (I own data I generate), collector view (organizations own data they collect), and public good view (some data should be shared). Practical questions: Who controls access? Who can profit from it? Who decides how it's used? Who bears liability for misuse? Current reality: in most jurisdictions, data ownership is poorly defined legally, terms of service often transfer rights, and practical control matters more than legal ownership. Moving toward data ownership: data portability (ability to take your data elsewhere), data trusts (collective governance), personal data stores (individual control), and regulation (defining rights and obligations). For knowledge workers, data ownership questions help: think about data rights, evaluate services' data practices, and consider ethical implications of data collection.
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