In today's digital world, data has become a valuable strategic asset for businesses. The improvement of analytics tools in recent years, thanks to the capacity of AI models and big data tools to collect large amounts of information, raises the question of the ethical handling of data governance more than ever before. But why do ethics come into play?

Data as the New Oil: Why Ethics Matter?

Firstly, data ethics refers to the responsible collection, storage, sharing and use of data within an organisation. The term encompasses the questions, considerations and debates surrounding data practices and their impact on individuals and society as a whole.

As mentioned above, data is widely considered to be the new oil, enabling companies to innovate and identify new performance opportunities. Not only is information more readily available and comprehensive than in the early days of personal computing, but the tools for analysis are also more powerful, accessible and user-friendly.

In an era where data plays a key role in transforming customer relationships, data ethics are essential for protecting privacy, ensuring fair use, and building trust.

Understanding Customers Through Data: Opportunities and Ethical Challenges

Collecting and analysing data enables organisations to better understand customer needs and anticipate market trends. This ultimately helps them to optimise decision-making and maximise economic performance.

Furthermore, companies invest significant resources in advanced software and analytical tools to speed up, improve the accuracy of, and increase the efficiency of data processing. This enables them to gain insights more quickly and maintain a competitive advantage.

At the same time, customers have finally become more attentive to how their personal data is collected and analysed. This is because they are now more aware of how their information is processed and used.

Indeed, several companies have been involved in legal cases following multiple revelations from internal sources about how they use personal data.

The Facebook–Cambridge Analytica Scandal: Data Misuse and Its Consequences

In 2018, it emerged that Facebook had sold its users' personal data to the company Cambridge Analytica without their consent, for political purposes. This scandal exposed the exploitation of personal information to influence voter behaviour.

Indeed, Cambridge Analytica gained access to the personal data of Facebook users through a third-party personality quiz app. When people used the app, it collected their information and also harvested data from their friends’ profiles. This data, covering tens of millions of users, was analysed to create detailed psychological and behavioural profiles.

Cambridge Analytica then used these profiles to create targeted political advertisements aimed at influencing voter opinions and behaviour during election campaigns, such as the 2016 US presidential election and the Brexit referendum.

These revelations sparked an intense public backlash, resulting in a loss of user trust and a significant decline in Facebook’s market value. The company’s CEO, Mark Zuckerberg, was summoned to testify before the US Congress, where he was asked tough questions about data privacy and corporate accountability.

Healthcare Data Sharing During COVID-19: Ethics, Privacy, and the Public Good

On the other hand, during the pandemic, sharing healthcare data became critical for tracking infections, developing vaccines and managing public health responses. Governments and organisations collected vast amounts of personal health information, ranging from test results to contact-tracing data.

While this data sharing was vital for safeguarding communities and saving lives, it also raised significant concerns regarding privacy, consent and the long-term storage of data.

The challenge lay in balancing the urgent public good of controlling the pandemic with individuals' right to privacy. This emphasised the need for robust ethical frameworks to guarantee that data was utilised responsibly and transparently, and solely for purposes directly related to the health crisis.

Building Trust Through Strong Data Governance

In the Mid-2010s, Laws such as the European Union’s General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR) set strict standards for data collection, processing, and storage, giving individuals greater control over their personal information.

Similarly, emerging frameworks like the EU’s AI Act aim to regulate the ethical use of artificial intelligence, ensuring transparency, accountability, and fairness in automated decision-making.

These regulations have also prompted organisations to adopt stronger internal data governance and robust data management practices, ensuring the quality and reliability of their data. This involves conducting regular risk assessments to identify and mitigate potential threats to data.

Simply collecting data is not enough; equally important is establishing clear rules and standards, defining roles and responsibilities, and maintaining proper documentation. This ensures that data is used responsibly, ethically, and effectively.

Ethics at the Core: Guiding AI and Data Innovation

In a world where generative AI and analytics tools are becoming more accessible, data ethics is not optional, it is fundamental. Without it, organisations risk losing the trust of their customers and stakeholders.

It is essential to build data solutions with privacy, fairness and transparency at their core to ensure responsible use and long-term credibility. Furthermore, both developers and the public must be educated and made aware of the importance of ethical design principles and potential biases in algorithms, and of their rights in the digital ecosystem.

These efforts together create a culture of accountability, trust, and responsible, human centred innovation in the rapidly evolving world of AI and data analytics.