1504.0 - Methodological News, Dec 2010  
ARCHIVED ISSUE Released at 11:30 AM (CANBERRA TIME) 09/12/2010   
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Data Confidentiality Symposium

The Australian Bureau of Statistics, CSIRO and the Statistical Society of Australia, Inc. (NSW) are sponsoring a one-day symposium on data confidentiality in Sydney on 18 January 2011.

National Statistical Agencies and other data custodian agencies and organisations currently face a challenge in balancing requests for access to data for research and policy development with privacy and confidentiality protection.

This symposium aims to provide an overview of data confidentiality issues and an introduction to current and emerging approaches. Topics to be covered will include:

  • an overview of current, large-scale successful initiatives in Australia which make health and other personal data available for research;
  • a review of techniques designed to confidentialise data before release to researchers;
  • a review of the role of synthetic data methods; and
  • a discussion of the role and design of remote access in future systems for balancing data access with confidentiality protection.

Speakers at the Symposium will include Professor Donald Rubin (Harvard University), Dr Christine O’Keefe (CSIRO), Mr Tim Hawkes (Statistics New Zealand) and researchers from the ABS Data Access and Confidentiality Methodology Unit.

The program, which is subject to change based on speaker availability, may be accessed at < http://www.cmis.csiro.au/conferences-seminars/DataConfSympProg.htm >.

There will be no charge for attendance at the Symposium. However prospective participants are asked to register in advance to facilitate planning. Please use the registration form at < http://www.cmis.csiro.au/conferences-seminars/DataConfSympReg.htm >.

More information on the Symposium may be obtained by following the links from the NSS home page < http://www.nss.gov.au >.