Abstract
Digital data is entangled in a variety of intersecting discourses and debates— from narratives about ‘big data revolutions’ and ‘open data movements’ to controversies surrounding security and surveillance practices as well as divisive questions about privacy and data protection as social and legal principles. This paper will unpack digital data from a security perspective within the context of the Safe Harbor Framework, a governance arrangement designed to facilitate digital data flows between the United States and the European Union. The driving focus of this paper is best defined through several interrelated questions, namely: What is digital data? How is it possible for digital data to be constructed in overlapping and contested ways? And what does the development and deterioration of the Safe Harbor Framework reveal about the nature of digital data in the contemporary world? This paper proposes that digital data is ‘alive’ and has many ‘lives’— simultaneously constructed as a ‘mundane’ feature of everyday life, as a component of ‘security-enhancing’ strategies, and as a ‘security threat’.
Highlights
Digital data represents the sum of information generated through actions and interactions on the Internet- encompassing everything from emailing and instant messaging to video streaming, online banking, and social networking (Gralla, 2007, p.13)
In tandem with these ongoing transformations, digital data has become entangled in a variety of intersecting discourses and debates- ranging from narratives about ‘big data revolutions’ and ‘open data movements’ to controversies surrounding security and surveillance practices as well as divisive questions about privacy and data protection as social and legal principles
The development and deterioration of the United States (US) - European Union (EU) Safe Harbor Framework illustrated how digital data may be constructed in overlapping and contested ways- simultaneously framed as a mundane feature of everyday life, as a component of security-enhancing strategies as well as an existential security threat
Summary
Digital data represents the sum of information generated through actions and interactions on the Internet- encompassing everything from emailing and instant messaging to video streaming, online banking, and social networking (Gralla, 2007, p.13). The upsurge of global Internet connectivity and the rapid development of Internetaccessible technologies and devices have enabled individuals and communities around the world to be constantly connected to the Internet (Lupton, 2015, p.9) These phenomena have resulted in the ‘datafication’ of contemporary life in the twenty-first century- as digital data is continuously collected, stored, and analyzed around world to produce insights about a wide range of social behaviors (Cukier and the Mayer- Schonberger, 2013, p.78). In tandem with these ongoing transformations, digital data has become entangled in a variety of intersecting discourses and debates- ranging from narratives about ‘big data revolutions’ and ‘open data movements’ to controversies surrounding security and surveillance practices as well as divisive questions about privacy and data protection as social and legal principles. This article proposes that digital data is ‘alive’ and has many ‘lives’ simultaneously existing as a ‘mundane’ feature of everyday life, as a component of ‘security- enhancing’ strategies, and as a ‘security threat’
Sign-in/Register to view highlights & summary Sign-in/Register to access full text options 
Talk to us
Join us for a 30 min session where you can share your feedback and ask us any queries you have
Schedule a callMore From: Contemporary Voices: St Andrews Journal of International Relations
Disclaimer: All third-party content on this website/platform is and will remain the property of their respective owners and is provided on "as is" basis without any warranties, express or implied. Use of third-party content does not indicate any affiliation, sponsorship with or endorsement by them. Any references to third-party content is to identify the corresponding services and shall be considered fair use under The CopyrightLaw.
