Writer Wen Hsieh Photo Microsoft 01.11.2020
What are related issues about the environmental impacts from this growth, while we defend awareness for digital data protection? Energy wasting. The energy used by the internet is largely invisible, such as our phones, laptops and so on. The feeling and the financial cost of using the energy is light as a feather for us, compared to the electric heating of our homes and offices for example. But globally the environmental costs of both producing the hardware and running the data banks is enormous, and is rising exponentially, contributing to global unsustainability. It therefore potentially represents a major environmental threat. (Microsoft. 2018) For example, as the study builds on the 2018 Microsoft report ” As the world’s use of cloud computing accelerates, so too does the energy consumed in the cloud. In the United States alone, datacenters consume about 70 billion kilowatt-hours (kWh) of electricity each year, roughly 1.8 percent of the total electricity consumed in the country. This number is expected to grow to 73 billion kWh by 2020, about the same amount of energy that 6 million homes consume in one year.” (Microsoft. 2018, p5 )
As the book ” Data protection : a practical guide to UK and EU law ” offers that data controllers should consider the cost of implementation of relevant measures, meanwhile, they should continue upgrading the changing tech, consequently the organisation remains consistent over time. ( Carey 2009 ). Microsoft is committed to maintaining data with improving tech. The final phase of Microsoft’s years of hard work has proved that the concept of underwater datacenters as feasible both environmentally and economically, but also it is logistically possible. They prove that by placing datacenters underwater near coastal cities, data will be able to travel over short distances, enabling fast and smooth web surfing, video streaming. They believe underwater datacenters works, because more than half of the world’s population lives within 120 miles of the coast. (Microsoft. 09.14.2020)
Yet, the public need to consider the expiration date of human data, even if Microsoft finds that underwater datacenters can reduce environmental pollution and use energy sustainably. That is to say, whether the data use value of the dead is equivalent to its long-term storage value. When data rights conflict with environmental pollution, how should we choose as human beings? Should we abandon the accumulation of wisdom or protect the environment? Maybe, it is worth idea by Peter Carey that ” ‘data minimisation’ principle also applies to the number of copies personal data in existence in an organization.” ( Carey 2009 )
The value of data is subjective. I discussed before to improve the awareness of digital data protection, and to focus on the promotion of people’s awareness of protection. People should regard their right to use data as property and make proper planning. I personally believe that all human beings are valuable and meaningful in this world. The evolution of human progress is formed by the accumulation and analysis of human data. Perhaps through more data analysis, human beings will find more progress and better green energy sustainability. In this article, I don’t mean that I don’t attach importance to environmental protection, but to inspire the public to think about the ownership of data after death? Who owns the ownership of data after a person death? The government? Consortium? Or after their own offspring?
Important information sharing here:
– Data protection law is applicable – examples include trading methods, financial reports and commercial secrets.
– Data Protection Act, 7th Data Protection Principle.
Appropriate technical and organisational measures shall be taken against unauthorised or unlawful processing of personal data and against accidental loss or destruction of, damage to, personal data.
– Organisational measure include relevant and appropriate training for all staff that use, or have access to, personal data in the workplace.
– When transferring personal data to organization that are located in countries outside the European Economic Area, data controllers are subject to the restrictions contained in the Eighth Data Protection Principle. Whilst such a transfer is no different from any other form of personal data processing in a strictly legal sense, the security obligations will, in practice, be particularly important in this context.
By Carey, Peter. Data protection : a practical guide to UK and EU law. ( p95 – p101)
在捍衛數位數據保護意識的同時，我們忽視了什麼？
在我們捍衛數位數據保護意識的同時，這種增長對環境的影響有哪些相關問題？能源浪費。互聯網所使用的能量基本上是看不見的，比如我們的手機、筆記型電腦等等。對我們來說，使用這種能源的感覺和經濟成本與我們的家庭和辦公室的電暖氣相比簡直微不足道。但是在全球範圍內，生產硬體和運行資料庫的環境成本都是巨大的，而且正呈指數級上升，這導致了全球的不可持續性。囙此，它可能是一個重大的環境威脅。（微軟。例如，該研究基於微軟2018年的報告“隨著全球云計算應用的加速，云計算所消耗的能源也在加速”。僅在美國，資料中心每年耗電約700億千瓦時，約占美國總用電量的1.8%。預計到2020年，這一數位將增長到730億千瓦時，大約相當於600萬戶家庭一年的能源消耗量。2018年，第5頁）
正如《數據保護：英國和歐盟法律實用指南》一書所述，數據控制者應考慮實施相關措施的成本，同時，他們應繼續陞級不斷變化的科技，囙此，隨著時間的推移，組織保持一致。（凱裡2009）。微軟致力於通過技術進步來維護數據。微軟多年努力的最後階段已經證明，水下資料中心的概念在環境和經濟上都是可行的，但在後勤方面也是可行的。他們證明，通過將資料中心置於沿海城市附近的水下，數據將能够進行短距離傳輸，從而實現快速流暢的飆網、視頻流。他們相信水下資料中心是有效的，因為世界上一半以上的人口生活在離海岸120英里的範圍內。（微軟。2020年9月14日）
即使微軟發現水下資料中心的使用期限已經到了永續的程度，微軟也可以考慮减少水下資料中心的污染。也就是說，死者的數據使用價值是否等於其長期存儲價值。當數據權與環境污染發生衝突時，作為人類，我們應該如何選擇？我們應該放弃智慧的積累還是保護環境？或許，值得彼得·凱裏提出的“數據最小化”原則也適用於組織中存在的個人數據的副本數量
數據的價值是主觀的。我在前面討論了提高數位數據保護意識，並著重提升了人們的保護意識。人們應該把自己的數據使用權視為財產，做好規劃。我個人認為，在這個世界上，所有人都是有價值和有意義的。人類進步的進化是通過人類數據的積累和分析而形成的。或許通過更多的資料分析，人類將發現更多的進步和更好的綠色能源可持續性。在這篇文章中，我不是說我不重視環保，而是要啟發公眾思考死後數據的歸屬問題？人死後誰擁有數據的所有權？政府？財團？還是為了自己的後代？
Bibliography:
-Carey, Peter. Data protection : a practical guide to UK and EU law. Publisher: Oxford ; Oxford University Press, 2009. ISBN: 0199563543; 9780199563548. ( p95 – p101)
– Microsoft. 2018. The Carbon Benefits of Cloud Computing: a Study of the Microsoft Cloud. Date Published: 7/29/2020.
https://www.microsoft.com/en-us/download/details.aspx?id=56950
– Microsoft. 09.14.2020. Microsoft finds underwater datacenters are reliable, practical and use energy sustainably
https://news.microsoft.com/innovation-stories/project-natick-underwater-datacenter/
Hsieh_wen_ 