Revaluing Data Protection Law: The Case of Information Access Rights

Individuals' rights to access information about them held by corporations are a long-standing feature of data protection law. Several jurisdictions are now expanding these rights in response to proliferating algorithmic evaluations of consumers, workers, borrowers, and internet users, which may determine important opportunities, benefits, and burdens. As agencies interpret and apply data access rights, they face a growing backlash from critics who emphasize the costs of compliance and minimize estimated benefits. This backlash may prematurely limit the scope of access rights by convincing regulators to interpret relevant statutes too narrowly. To avoid that outcome, policymakers should recognize the full range of benefits of rights to information access, bearing in mind their social and long-term benefits. This lecture presented proposals that can contribute to guaranteeing the rights of access to information.