The Social Construction of Personal Data Protection in Smart Cities

Abstract

Cities are striving to become ‘smart’. What exactly a smart city signifies is debatable, but the designation most often refers to an intensification of ICT use and data use by local authorities, and seeking closer collaboration with other stakeholders. Whereas the concept of the smart city is not clearly delineated, the same can be said for the requirements for personal data protection under the GDPR. In this paper, we apply a social constructivist approach to the development of personal data protection in smart city initiatives to argue that personal data protection in smart cities is in a stage of ‘interpretative flexibility’, implying that different groups put forward different meanings to these concepts. Based on a quasi-empirical scenario analysis, we assess interpretations, opportunities and challenges related to the most influential actors and factors. To conclude, we formulate a number of specific recommendations for privacy-friendly implementation of smart city initiatives.