The legal precautions available to network operators usually involve compliance with local data protection provisions. But mobile applications today are making more and more use of global data networks and servers, so the legal situation is murky. If they ask, customers should be told about the implications, and in special cases they should even be warned about accessing servers. Cooperation among international telecommunications companies and the establishment of common legal standards could provide more protection and allow intervention in the event of damage. Pro-active lobbying by network operators can contribute to the creation of a global legal system, a unified legal framework, concerning telecommunications services. 

Users must take responsibility for their actions

However, the most important means for data protection is ­raising users’ awareness to the risks which are lurking in the ­careless handling of data. This is related to both the voluntary submission of information on the Web and to unaware distribution by presumed “data leaks”. Users of new technologies are often unaware of the exact scope of the functions and possible consequences, which can lead to the unnecessary distribution of data. One example is the automatic inclusion of the user’s own position in every picture that is taken with an iPhone. This can be used to determine the user’s location at any time if, for ­example, this picture is uploaded into a social network. ­Network operators should work to educate their customers about ­potential risks in using new media, i.e., raising the level of “media competence” of their customers. 

In the medium term, access controls, secrecy, and encryption for the protection of private data do good service. However, there is no such thing as perfect protection, which is why more and more private data are becoming publicly accessible (disclosure). Such personal information, when freely available on the Web, can also have positive effects, as argued above. So secrecy is not always desirable. 

In the long term, a feasible concept for dealing with this ­contradiction and the steadily rising flood of data could be found in increased data usage transparency and the shifting of responsibility for the data. Customers would be given greater transparency regarding the use and distribution of their data so that they could intervene whenever they discover misuse. This is already being practiced successfully in the USA with respect to a person’s credit score: you can see who has accessed this information and, if necessary, restrict access as well.