The end of the Data Privacy Project

Hello! 👋

We have reached the end of the Data Privacy Project! In this news message, you can read all about what we accomplished in this project in the last few years, and our plans for the future!

What did we work on?

In this project, we focused on four project deliverables:

1. 🧠 Data Privacy Handbook
   The Data Privacy Handbook is an open source, openly licensed knowledge base and overview of tools and techniques about handling personal data in scientific research. You can find it here. We also created a tool overview, and opportunities to contribute.
   
   

2. 🛠️ Use cases and tool development
   Through example projects, we (co)developed 2 Python packages (AnonymoUUs and MetaSynth) and published example projects in the Data Privacy Handbook to draw inspiration from.
   
   

3. 🔍 Data Privacy Survey
   Through a survey and one-on-one meetings with researchers, we found out what challenges researchers run into and what they need in terms of privacy-related support. You can access the reports and project materials via the dedicated GitHub repository.
   
   

4. 💪 Dissemination and training
   Through dissemination activities and the development of a basic online module on privacy, we aimed to increase awareness of privacy in general, and the project’s deliverables in particular.

Who, how, when?

This project was started at Utrecht University’s (UU) Research Data Management Support (the Netherlands) in 2020. By spring of 2021, we received funding from the Dutch Organization for Scientific Research (NWO) and extended the project to the deliverables described here. The project ran until May 2023 under the lead of research data management (university library) and research engineering (IT department). However, its deliverables could not have been realized without the significant contributions from privacy officers, faculty data staff, security officers, ethics committee members, and other UU staff. 🙏 A Big Thank You 🙏 to all who contributed!

What’s next?

The project deliverables will be taken up in the organization, meaning that we will:

• continue promoting them among UU researchers and at external events where relevant.
• maintain them so that they will not become outdated.
• further develop them and add relevant new information, such as new legislation, policy, tools or techniques.

If you have questions or suggestions about this project, let us know!