Non-cryptographic security to data: Distortion based anonymization techniques

Ensuring privacy to sensitive data is becoming an important criterion in the data access policies of governments and corporations. Providing security to data using non-cryptographic based techniques has been in use for a long time. They are used to provide security to Health data, finance data and the like. Data are distorted using various approaches to hide sensitive information and provide privacy. A whole line of methods from statistical disclosure control to distortion based techniques are in use. This paper discusses the strengths and drawbacks of a particular type of distortion approach, Data Anonymization.