Data usage and data protection: Is it possible to pursue both?

Despite public agencies' increasing commitments to and policy efforts for releasing and utilizing data, little is actually discussed about the use and value of personal data in both public and private sectors. This is probably because data security and privacy protection issues have taken up more policy attention than has data use. Presuming that data have value when they are used, not when they are protected in a safe place, this study tries to answer the following questions: (1) Why should personal data be used, and how should such data use be processed? (2) What are the exemplary cases of data use in developed countries, and what are their implications? and (3) Is it possible to achieve both data use and data protection in the personal data area, and if so, how? To answer these questions, this study investigates examples of excellent personal data usage from two developed countries. After reviewing two personal data use policies, comparisons and some policy implications are suggested.