Computerisation, data privacy and scientific excellence; Where are we going?

Computerisation of most human activities that handle data is widely in function nowadays. General fears of Big Brother syndrome are ubiquitous. The paper attempts to challenge this common wisdom by demonstrating on some examples how computerisation in connection with proclaimed data privacy politics actually hinders the useful information, some of which was even formerly available, without computerisation or in older information system versions before the current rigid data privacy legislation. Examples are taken primarily from some personal author’s experience and from information systems aimed for academic community in Croatia, developed at the author’s Department. Data privacy prevents ordinary members of the academic community or society from proper investigation that could challenge the adequacy of existing policies. At the same time, the persons who institutionally have granted access to the collected information and who are the most influential to conduct policies have hardly time to do so.