Topic 7. Legal maneuvers.

Post 1

Re-identifying (for research) and publishing the data are two separate things -- re- identification ca be pursued in almost all situations if the results are kept private, but publishing requires a more comprehensive understanding of the information and the consent of the people involved. Maneuvers to sue are actually quite difficult, as privacy is difficult to "legally" prove. If you don't want to get sued, don't re-identify information under a data use agreement that forbids re-identification.

Post 2

No, researchers should not re-identify data acquired under a data use agreement that forbids re-identification! I mean, come on. A researcher engaged in re-identification experiment should be aware of the legal landscape, and be aware of the difference between reidentification and publication.

Post 3

Reidentification should not be pursued when a data use agreement forbids it. Experiments are fine if approved by the IRB, but publication is a different matter.

Post 4

Research and publication are two completely separate issues. If it were to become illegal, however, then researchers should still try to reidentify data because the criminals will still try and it would be good to know how to protect the data.