Business Analytics · Intermediate level

Intermediate level · Module 6: Analytics Strategy, Ethics and Capstone · Lesson 2 of 3

Data Ethics, Privacy and Governance

Use data responsibly: protect people, respect consent and govern data well.

In this lesson you will

  • Apply privacy and consent principles
  • Identify risks of harm and unfairness in analysis

Key concepts

consentdata minimisationanonymisationfairness

The lesson

Collect and use only the personal data needed for a clear purpose, with people's informed consent, and keep it secure.

Remove names and identifiers before analysis where possible; small groups can still identify people, so report them carefully.

Consider who could be harmed: analytics that excludes vulnerable customers from services or targets them unfairly is a risk to people and to the organisation's reputation.

Step by step

  1. List the personal data in your project.
  2. Check purpose and consent.
  3. Remove or protect identifiers.
  4. Complete the ethics checklist.
Step-by-step

Ethics check before analysing customer data

Six checks to complete before using personal data in an analysis.

  1. State the purpose

    Write the decision the analysis supports; drop any data not needed for it.

  2. Check consent

    Confirm people were told how their data would be used and agreed where required.

  3. Remove identifiers

    Replace names and phone numbers with codes before analysis; keep the key separately and securely.

  4. Protect small groups

    Do not report groups so small that individuals could be recognised.

  5. Consider harm

    Ask who could be excluded or treated unfairly because of the results, and adjust the plan.

  6. Secure and delete

    Store data with access limited to those who need it and delete it when the purpose is complete.

Result

An analysis that answers the business question while respecting the people behind the data.

Practice activity

Apply the ethics checklist to the level project and the governance part of the roadmap.

Expected result: A completed checklist with actions to reduce risks.

Check your understanding

  1. What is data minimisation?

    Show answer

    Collecting and using only the data needed for a clear purpose.

  2. Why can small groups be a privacy risk?

    Show answer

    Individuals may be identifiable even without names.

Taught live by an instructor — online or in person. Free course lessons are for self-study and do not lead to a certificate — see registration options.