Note: The active project is Petweb II.

Project goal

The overall goal is to enable communicating organisations to include privacy enhancing technologies (PETs) in large-scale web-based services for the general public and customers.

Motivation

The motivation for this project arises from the following:

1. Communication services and networks have become complex and highly interconnected, and the cost of storage is approaching zero for all practical purposes. This means that there is no longer any pressing need to remove redundant or duplicate data with the result that the volume of stored data is enormous and constantly increasing. The web makes it easy to access data and easy to aggregate and correlate data from numerous different sources.
2. In the long run, access restriction alone cannot suffice to protect privacy and the enforcement of privacy using traditional methods of access control/PETs becomes difficult since it does not scale adequately to the increased volume of data/information.
3. Therefore it is necessary to investigate new approaches to privacy enhancing technologies in order to arrive at technologies that are scalable, practical and in accordance with relevant legislation.

Objective

The primary objective is to devise a framework for facilitating the development of the next generation of privacy enhancing technologies in large-scale web-based services. PETweb will conduct case study research on such services, and develop tools and mechanisms to assess the impact of privacy threats, and their removal in a system architecture.

The objectives are as follows:

1. Analyse the requirements communicating organizations have when using next-generation PETs in large-scale web-based services
2. Analyse and identify gaps and hindrances to the application of PETs in such services
3. Devise a framework to assist in the development of web-based services when these services include next-generation PETs
4. Perform a case study and validation of the results using the Mypage/MinSide service
5. Disseminate knowledge and results from the PETweb project

PETweb is a successor of the "SIP Privacy project".

PETweb results

Events

• The Norwegian Computing Center hosted a workshop on privacy-enhancing technologies (PET), privacy and privacy protection on Dec. 11, 2007 in Oslo.

Publications

PETweb will deliver a series of project reports. The reports will be made available through the Norwegian Computing Center's publications database. Additionally, scientific and general-interest publications related to PETweb are referenced here.

PETweb reports

• Fritsch, Lothar: State of the Art of Privacy-enhancing Technology (PET) - Deliverable D2.1 of the PETweb project In: Norsk Regnesentral Report 1013, ISBN 978-82-53-90523-5, Oslo, Norway, 22-Nov-2007. Get full text. A historic, taxonomic and practical presentation of contemporary privacy-enhancing technology for the Internet.

Presentations and Press

• Dr. Åsmund Skomedal, Research Director at Norwegian Computing Center: Privacy Enhancing Technology (PET) for Web based Services. Presentation at the VERDIKT-Conference in Hell (Norway) on 29.-30. Oktober 2007. Presentation abstract is available in the Abstracts book.
• Dr. Åsmund Skomedal, Research Director at Norwegian Computing Center: Id-jakt med gode hensikter, Interview in ABC-Nyheter, 08.10.07.

Publications

• Andreassen, Freddy L. (2007) Are the Norwegian Internet users ready for the new threats to their information? : A survey on awareness and use of preventive technologies. Høgskolen i Gjøvik, 2007. - XIII, 82 s. (Master's thesis, Master of Science in Information Security) (Master i informasjonssikkerhet / Høgskolen i Gjøvik) Get full text!
• Fritsch, Lothar (2007) Privacy-Respecting Location-Based Service Infrastructures: A Socio-Technical Approach to Requirements Engineering, Journal of Theoretical and Applied E-Commerce research (2:3), pp. 1-17. Get full text!
• Fritsch, Lothar; Abie, Habtamu (2008) Towards a Research Road Map for the Management of Privacy Risks in Information Systems In: GI (Eds.): Tagungsband SICHERHEIT 2008, Lecture Notes in Informatics (LNI), Saarbrücken, upcoming 02-Apr-2008

Miscellaneous

Project partners

PETweb is a multi-disciplinary research project with Norwegian and international partners. The project coordinator is Norsk Regnesentral / Norwegian Computing Center (NR). NR's research in the area of Information and Communication Technology has a main basis in security, privacy and interactive, network-based technology. NR has previously run several projects on privacy in ICT systems.

Project research parters are:

• Gjøvik University College (GUC): Gjøvik University College (GUC) is one of 25 state university colleges in Norway and has approximately 1700 students and 200 employees and administrative staff. It was established in 1994 as part of the national reorganisation of higher education and consists of two former institutions within engineering and nursing education. Gjøvik University College is organised in three academic faculties and offers studies within health and social work, health technology, engineering, computer science and media technology. GUC is localised at Kallerud in Gjøvik. Within the Faculty of Technology GUC has established a postgraduate programs of high relevancy to the PETweb project: The Master of Science in Information Security

• Borking Consultancy (BC): Dr. Borking is the former Privacy Commissioner and Board member of the Dutch Data Protection Authority (CBP) in The Hague. He is one of the leading capacities on law and privacy in Europe. Borking Consultancy is a private, independent micro SME ( one employee Drs. J.J.Borking Director/Owner) established in 2002, having its legal domicile at Wassenaar (The Netherlands) and registered at the Commercial Chamber of The Hague (Kamer van Koophandel Haaglanden) (The Netherlands) under number 27249622. Its main activities are advising national and international governmental and commercial organizations on privacy and computer law, the deployement of privacy enhancing technologies and alternative dispute resolution, carrying out contract research in the areas mentioned before (inter alia EU funded research) and acting as ICT arbitrator and mediator. Delivered products are advices, reports and verdicts / legal opinions.

Project industry and user partners are:

• Software Innovation: Norway’s leading Software developer, responsible for the implementation of MinSide
• Sun Microsystems: World leading supplier of technology based on international standards and openness. The driving force in open source software. Main Technology partner for Identity Management in MinSide.
• Norge.no (Norway.no): Norway.no's primary task is to act as a gateway to the public sector in Norway. Norway.no’s aim to make finding public information and accessing public services easier for members of the public. Norge.no is the MinSide system owner. Please note that Norway.no has won the European E-Government Award 2007 on Sep.20, 2007.

Links

• Habtamu Abie's Privacy Links
• The Handbook on Privacy and Privacy-enhancing Technologies by Blarkom/Borking/Olk (eds.)
• Test how much identifiable data is leaked out by your web browser on TU Dresden's Anonymity test Page, e.g. using the Leader.ru test page!
• Watch internet privacy awareness videos for teenagers made for a Norwegian School campaign by the Data Inspectorate!
• See Springer's upcoming interdisciplinary book on Profiling the European Citizen!

Folklore

• Google controls your e-mail, your videos, your calendar, your searches… What if it controlled your life? What if Google were evil?A disturbing, fictional short-story thriller from the Radar Online magazine.
• Listen to the Privacy Song by the group "Three Dead Trolls in a Baggie"!
• See what happens to personal information in the real world down below the Ivory Tower of research in Lothar Fritsch's Privacy Geoblog!