Two lists, one question
A company has a list of 20 laptop faults from 2015, copied from a forum. It also has 5,000 fault records from last month, written by its own engineers.
Which list helps more? And is it fair to keep every detail of the people who reported the faults? This lesson answers both questions.
By the end of this lesson
Note
I can judge the value of data using quantity, timeframe, source and veracity.
Key words
| Word | What it means | Example |
|---|---|---|
| Ethics | Rules about what is fair, honest and safe for people. | Ask before you collect |
| UK GDPR | The UK law on how personal data is used. | Say why you collect it |
| Quantity | How much data there is. | 5,000 records |
| Timeframe | How recent the data is, and the period it covers. | Last month |
| Source | Where the data came from. | Our own engineers |
| Veracity | How true and accurate the data is. | Checked against the asset register |
| Personal data | Data about a living person who can be identified. | A name and room number |
| Consent | A person says yes, knowing what will happen. | A ticked box with a clear reason |
The cells students fill in are left blank in this preview.
Starter: what you already know
Have a go
Starter: what you already know
3 questionsYour answers are marked here and are not kept. A college account keeps every student’s marks.
Ethical data practice
Data about people has power, so treat it with care. Ethical practice means:
- Collect only what you need. A help desk needs a name and a fault, not a home address.
- Say why you collect it and get consent where you need it.
- Keep it safe and tell people if it leaks.
- Keep it accurate and delete it when you no longer need it.
- Be fair. Do not use it to treat groups of people badly.
The law behind it
Important
In the UK, personal data is protected by UK GDPR and the Data Protection Act 2018. Ethics goes further than the law. Something can be legal and still be unfair.
Check: ethical or not?
Have a go
Check: ethical or not?
3 questionsYour answers are marked here and are not kept. A college account keeps every student’s marks.