Data Trust

Data trusts are a form of data sharing arrangement. They facilitate the collective setting of terms for data use on behalf of the individuals or organisations whose data rights are held in the trust.
=== Trust law ===
A Trust is a legal mechanism to manage the rights associated with an object or asset for the benefit of another person. A trust establishes a relationship in which assets or rights are "held and managed by one person or people (the trustee) to benefit another person or people (the beneficiary)".The Law Society (2020) Trusts, available at https://www.lawsociety.org.uk/for-the-public/common-legal-issues/trusts/, accessed 7 June 2020 In this relationship, Trustees agree to take on legal responsibilities to act for the benefit of a third party (the beneficiary), according to fiduciary duties including loyalty, prudence and impartiality. Almost any right can be held in trust.
=== Data rights held in trust ===
A data trust is a form of data sharing institution. A data trust framework allows groups of individuals or organisations to invest their data rights in a trust, tasking trustees with negotiating terms of data use – which may be for mutual or public benefit – on their behalf. This ability to enable data sharing and collective negotiation allows data trusts help address some of the limitations associated with individual consent-based approaches to data governance.
=== Connection to other forms of data institution or data sharing frameworks ===
The term ‘data trust’ has sometimes been used to describe legal frameworks for data sharing that draw from concepts or structures outside trust law. These include:
* Data commons initiatives;
* Contracts between organisationsOpen Data Institute (2019) Data trusts: lessons from three pilots, available at https://theodi.org/article/odi-data-trusts-report/
* Personal data stores;
* Research partnerships or collaborative agreements.
=== Connection to data governance policy ===
The concept of a ‘data trust’ as a data governance tool has its origins in debates about the privacy implications of data useEdwards, L. (2004) The Problem with Privacy, International Review of Law Computers & Technology, Vol. 18, No. 3, pp. 263-294, November 2004. Available at SSRN: https://ssrn.com/abstract=1857536. Its development and application to policy challenges has drawn inspiration from the emergence of land societies as a means of facilitating collective action.Lawrence, N. (2016) Data trusts could allay our privacy fears, The Guardian, available at: https://www.theguardian.com/media-network/2016/jun/03/data-trusts-privacy-fears-feudalism-democracy
A 2017 review by the UK Government recommended that policymakers and industry seek to develop “Data Trusts – proven and trusted frameworks and agreements – to ensure exchanges are secure and mutually beneficial”.UK Government (2017) Growing the artificial intelligence industry in the UK, available at: https://assets.publishing.service.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/652097/Growing_the_artificial_intelligence_industry_in_the_UK.pdf Since that report:
* A white paper by the company Element AI recommended that governments, industry and civil society collaborate to develop data trusts, “especially in sectors where an absence of competition has left consumers with no viable alternative”.Element AI (2018) Data trusts: reinforced data governance that empowers the public Available at: https://hello.elementai.com/data-trusts.html It subsequently announced that it would be working with the Mozilla Foundation to pilot data trusts.Element AI (2019) Element AI and Mozilla Foundation Partner to Build Data Trusts. Available at: https://www.elementai.com/press-room/element-ai-and-mozilla-foundation-partner-to-build-data-trusts-and-advocate-for-the-ethical-data-governance-of-ai
* A series of pilot studies by UK charity Open Data Institute has explored the feasibility of applying alternative legal structures to governing data.Open Data Institute (2019) Data trusts: lessons from three pilots, available at https://theodi.org/article/odi-data-trusts-report/
* Contributing to a smart city initiative in Toronto, Sidewalk Labs proposed to establish a civic data trust to manage the data collected from a waterfront development.Sidewalk labs (2018) An update on data governance for Sidewalk labs, available at: https://www.sidewalklabs.com/blog/an-update-on-data-governance-for-sidewalk-toronto/ Issues associated with this development are further explored in McDonald, S. (2019) Reclaiming data trusts. Available at https://www.cigionline.org/articles/reclaiming-data-trusts
* In its 2019 proposals to modernize the Personal Information Protection and Electronic Documents Act, the Canadian Government proposed to incentivize the development of data trusts as a route to encourage data-enabled innovation.Government of Canada (2019) Strengthening Privacy for the Digital Age, available at https://www.ic.gc.ca/eic/site/062.nsf/eng/h_00107.html
* A report by the German Federal Data Ethics Commission recommended that research and development of data trusts schemes be identified as a funding priority.Daten Ethik Komission (2019) Opinion of the Data Ethics Commission, available at https://www.bmjv.de/
== References ==
==External links==
* Data Trust twitter page
* Data Trust linkedin page
* Data Trust facebook page
* Data Trust website
* What is a data trust? – The ODI
* Data Trusts: Why, What and How - Anouk Ruhaak - Medium
* What is a data trust? — Sightline Innovation
* Data Trusts - Democratizing Data & Data Access
* What is a data trust? – The Living Library
Category:Data security
Category:Legal systems
Category:Data visualization
Category:Computer data storage
Category:Data management