Opinions about balancing between information sharing and information protection - Assignment Example

Opinions about Balancing Between Information Sharing and Information Protection of the Computer Sciences and Information Technology of the Concerned ProfessorApril 14, 2012Opinions about Balancing Between Information Sharing and Information Protection Running institutions and organizations is primarily about the storage, retrieval, processing and dissemination of information. However, in the current times when these processes pertaining to information are getting digitized, much debate has come into existence regarding striking the right balance between information sharing and information protection.

Though on the surface, there seems to be a dichotomy between the sharing and protection of information, in a pragmatic context, there is no innate conflict between information sharing and information protection. Information sharing and information protection are the two sides of the same coin. Without the existence of a possibility to share information, the concept of information protection sounds absurd. The other way round, without the existence of the systematic mechanisms for protecting information, information sharing is not possible.

For, to put it simply, the crux of entire information sharing and protection is to enable the sharing of information with the right individuals and agencies, in just the right format, at just the right time and to just the right extent. The entire scope of online data sharing is hinged on the trust that the concerned individuals and agencies will safeguard the information they receive and will do their best to protect the awkward situations arising owing to information sharing (Smith, 1994, p. 114). Hence, information protection is primarily about trust.

So information protection stands to be a pivotal aspect of all the processes aimed at information sharing. Respecting this trust necessitates the envisaging of designing the apt practices that assure that the information being shared does not get into the hands of unauthorized elements (Smith, 1994, p. 114). Information protection also assures the reliability and accuracy of the information being shared and that the right information happens to be accessible as and when required. In a practical context, data protection is not a barrier to information sharing, but rather assures that the information accrued from individuals and organizations gets shared appropriately and within the constraints of a disciplined framework.

So, information protection deals with the recognition of benign considerations that protect the safety and confidentially of the sources that may be drastically impacted by the revelation of the information pertaining to them (Nissenbaum, 2010, p. 106). Yet, it is also a fact that too much safeguarding of information may turn out to be constraining and counterproductive and may impede the pursuance of the day to day routine processes and procedures. So the need is to achieve the right and delicate balance between information protection and information sharing.

The mechanisms put in place to protect information need to be rational, pragmatic, and vital, secure, timely, relevant, proportionate, balanced, and fool proof (Nissenbaum, 2010, p. 142). This assures that the shared information is necessary to achieve the desired objectives; it gets shared with the people who are authorized and in need of it, in a timely and secure manner. Hence, in conclusion, information sharing and information protection go hand in hand, and neither of the two processes could be achieved amicably, without the existence of the other.

ReferencesNissenbaum, Helen. (2010). Privacy in Context. Stanford. CA: Stanford University Press. Smith, H Jeff. (1994). Managing Privacy: Information Technology and Corporate America. Chapel Hill, NC: University of North Carolina Press.