UN organizations pass joint statement on data privacy and protection in Covid-19 response

All multilateral bodies of the United Nations such as UN OCHA, UNDP, UNESCO, UNHCR, UNICEF, ITU, among others, have passed the joint statement on the UN Personal Data Protection and Privacy Principles adopted by the UN System Organizations.

The guidelines were passed in order to support its use of data and technology in the Covid-19 response in a way that respects the right to privacy and other human rights and promotes economic and social development. The agencies mentioned in the statement that the mounting evidence demonstrates that the collection, use, sharing, and further processing of data can help limit the spread of the virus. This can also aid in accelerating the recovery, especially through digital contact tracing.

The organizations believe that mobility data can assist in monitoring the spread of the virus and support the implementation of the UN System Organizations’ mandated activities. Hence, the collection and processing of such data, including digital contact tracing and general health surveillance may include the collection of vast amounts of personal and non-personal sensitive data.

They believe that this could have significant effects beyond the initial crisis response phase, including potentially leading to the infringement of fundamental human rights and freedoms. This concern is especially pressing if some emergency measures introduced to address the pandemic, such as digital contact tracing, are turned into standard practice, added the statement.

The organizations concluded that the guidelines may serve as a precedent for using data to respond to any future crises of a similar scale quickly and while respecting data protection and privacy.