By International Telecommunication Union via UKs eGov Monitor: This article from the international Telecommunication Union (ITU) considers the impact of mobile technologies on society and the challenges and responsibilities of government and the telecommuncation industry to deliver universal access whilst ensuring personal privacy in the age of ubiquitous computing.

The “privacy paradox” associated with ubiquitous network societies involves three co-dependent domains: the technical domain (e.g. encryption and spyware), the regulatory domain (e.g. rules on disclosure and retention of personal data) and the sociological domain (e.g. blurring boundaries between public and private spaces). In the sociological domain, privacy issues are evaluated as they relate to social systems and norms and, in this respect, education and awareness about the concept of privacy are important starting points, according to the ITU workshop held in April 2005 on “Ubiquitous Network Societies”.