USACM Statement on President Obama’s Comments on Privacy and Computing Security

Below is a statement from USACM regarding comments by the President of the United States.

The President’s State of the Union address provides an important opportunity to focus on critical privacy and computing security questions facing the nation. The Association for Computing Machinery’s US Public Policy Council (USACM) believes that not only is privacy important, it is also something we do not need to reduce to enhance security.

While current events have led some to frame the discussion as a tradeoff of privacy in the name of security, USACM's extensive experience shows that in the majority of cases, effective security for business and enterprise systems can be accomplished without sacrificing individual privacy. Shortcuts that require unnecessary privacy tradeoffs should be avoided to preserve both transparency and consumer trust.

Effective privacy and security policies need to be developed proactively by both business and government because effective data privacy policies and practices can provide benefits to consumers and commercial interests alike.

About ACM and the ACM US Public Policy Council

ACM, the Association for Computing Machinery, is the world’s largest educational and scientific computing society, uniting computing educators, researchers and professionals to inspire dialogue, share resources and address the field’s challenges. The ACM US Public Policy Council (USACM) serves as the focal point for ACM's interaction with the US government in matters of US public policy related to information technology. ACM US Public Policy Council statements represent the views of the Council and do not necessarily represent the views of the Association.

Contact:

Virginia Gold
212-626-0505
[email protected]