Course Syllabus

Computer Science 105 

Note: For the first two meetings of this course, we will meet in the Geology Lecture Hall, Geology 100. After that, we will meet in Pierce 301.

Privacy and Technology

Course Information - Fall 2017

This course examines several areas in which privacy and technology are thought to be in conflict. Students will explore whether these conflicts are real and, if so, discuss what could reasonably be done about them in the areas of both technology and policy. The subtext of this focus is that much of the current debate over the privacy-invasiveness of technology rests on misunderstandings of what is really possible with technology, or what policy can dictate of that technology. This lack of mutual understanding between technologists and those that propose and implement policy may well constitute the most potent threats to individual privacy. We will look at a number of current controversies having to do with the use of technology and the effects of that use on individual privacy, along with the laws and regulations that have been designed or interpreted as relevant to these issues. 

In the course of these explorations, we will focus on the development of three sets of tools. First, students will learn to think critically about the complex and often nebulous ideas of privacy, studying it from ethical, legal, philosophical and economic perspectives. Second, students will learn to analyze a technical system for its policy relevance. Using technical documents as well as secondary sources, students should distinguish between marketing jargon, fear-mongering and actual policy issues by looking to the structure of the system itself, as well as analysis and prediction of system implementation. Students will learn how to construct threat models for various scenarios, and how to analyze those scenarios to determine the plausibility of various alleged privacy violations.  Finally, students will learn to effectively communicate technical concepts and policy concerns.  

A defining goal of the course is to bring together students from disparate disciplines so that each can learn from the other while tackling problems where technology and policy are deeply tangled. The course is designed around a case-study approach; we will create inter-disciplinary teams of students for discussing and studying the various cases. 

Administrative Details 

Course Admission: There are generally a lot more people wanting to take this course than we have slots available, so getting in requires you to apply. Details of the application can be found as the first assignment; essentially we are asking for a short essay on why you want to take the course, and a one-minute video of what you will contribute to the course. 

Class hours: Tuesdays and Thursdays from 1:00- 2:30 pm. There may also be occasional (optional) labs at a time tbd. During the first week, we will be meeting in the Geology 100. After study card day, we will meet in Pierce 301.

Instructors:     

  Jim Waldo ( waldo [at] g dot harvard dot edu ) (MD 127 or One Brattle 480)

  Molly Cinnamon (cinnamon [at] college dot harvard dot edu

  Katherine Loboda (kloboda [at] college dot harvard dot edu )

  Elizabeth Elmgren (elmgren [at] college dot harvard dot edu)

Office hours:

    Jim Waldo: Tuesdays and Thursdays, 3-4, MD 127 or by appointment.

Prerequisites

None. This course is open to all students. However, enrollment will be limited to approximately 30 students, so permission of the instructors will be required. 

Special arrangements can be made with graduate students and cross-registrants to meet personal requirements.

Course Requirements

Each two-week unit in the course will comprise three classroom sessions, one of which may be a speaker from industry or academia with particular expertise in the area under consideration. The classroom sessions will be a combination of lecture and discussion; much of the grade will depend on class participation. In support of each unit, each student will be asked to read a number of papers on the topic of the unit and submit a question on the reading, write a short position paper (2-3 pages) responding to a couple of open-ended questions, and prepare for and participate in the discussion sections. In the final session of each two-week study, students will work together with a handful of classmates to produce a briefing document, position paper, or other artifact relevant to the week's discussion. Students should be prepared to work together under a short deadline to produce the collaborative project following each unit. These group assignments will be given Thursday afternoon and will be due Sunday night, so students should expect to spend a considerable part of the intervening time working on the project.

For some of the case studies, we will offer hands-on labs either before the group assignment is given or outside of regular class hours to allow students to get hands-on experience with the technologies being studied. The labs taught outside of regular class hours will be optional (but highly recommended).

The final project will allow students, working alone or in pairs, to explore an aspect of the topic of this course in greater detail. Every project should require research into an idea or issue beyond that directly discussed during the semester, clearly implementing skills learned from the class. The primary output of your research may be a position paper, experimental analysis, or engineering prototype, as well as a presentation during reading period.

Late assignments will not be accepted; attendance at all course meetings will be expected.

Rules of digital etiquette will be expected; if you are using a laptop or other device to take notes, it is expected that you will not also be reading or composing email, chatting with friends, checking Facebook, or shopping. Cell phones that ring during class will be answered by the instructors.

There will not be any examinations given in this course.

Cooperation

Due to the interdisciplinary nature of the course topic, students will be expected to work with each other and learn from each others' perspectives and backgrounds. Individual papers should be written by and worked on individually, but everything else in the class is designed to encourage group discussion, interaction, and participation.

Grading

  10% Class participation
  10% Reading questions
  25% Personal writings
  25% Group writings
  30% Final project/paper

Textbooks and Other Readings

There is no required text for this course. All reading material will be distributed on the class site or will be available on the Internet. This material will be supplemented with technical, academic, and popular-press readings from the Internet.  Outside speakers will also be invited to shed light (or generate heat) on some of the topics.

Planned Course Sequence 

(Note that the following is subject to change without notice)

Weeks 1-2: Privacy Concepts

      Theories of privacy: legal, theoretical, social science

Week 3-4: Surveillance

      Identification and observation in the physical world

      Identification and observation in the virtual world

      Law enforcement, corporations, and surveillance

Week 5-6: Anonymity and re-identification

      What is anonymity

      Mechanisms of re-identification

      Big Data, anonymity, re-identification, and accuracy

 Week 7-8: Who are you?

      In the digital world, how do you prove that you are you?

      Biometrics

      Digital Signatures

Week 9-10: Wiretaps, traces and networks

       What is tapping, tracing, and how does it work on the phone network, and internet complications

       Search and seizure in digital worlds

       Encryption, security, and dissent

Week 11-12: Algorithms, big data, and privacy

       Intro to research design and computational science

       Algorithms, transparency, and privacy

       Big Data, Algorithms, and Elections

Week 13 (and, perhaps, 14): Project Presentations