IBM privacy chief: Asia need not mimic Europe

Harriet Pearson, chief privacy officer, IBM

(Credit: IBM)

Harriet Pearson once joined a petition signed by Facebook users, urging the social-networking site to do more in terms of privacy.

But the privacy expert considers herself a moderate when it comes to protecting her personal information.

Pearson, IBM's chief privacy officer for the past nine years and also its security counsel since last year, says each person needs a mental model to assess the benefits or risks associated with providing personal data. In the same way, she said, governments ought to be thoughtful when drafting policies and laws on data protection.

In town recently for Singapore's annual GovernmentWare conference, Pearson sat down with ZDNet Asia to discuss data protection legislation, the need for a balanced view regarding data breach notification, and why Asian regulators should not "photocopy" European law books.

Read more of "Asia's lawmakers need not copy Europe" at ZDNet Asia.