Anticipating Ethical Issues When Designing Services that Employ Personal Data

Advancements in technology enable cross-device interactions and the creation of complex ecosystems of Internet of Things (IoT). Networked systems support the creation of services for multiple purposes such as smart transportation, health care, wellbeing. The spreading of services based on personal data is shaping current socio-technical systems; it induces innovations that are changing everyday scenarios and behaviors, posing ethical issues that should be taken into account since the very first phases of the design process. As designers, we need to understand the user experience with respect to the usual requirements of usability, acceptability and desirability of the new solutions, and manage delicate issues related to the impacts of these solutions on individuals and communities. This requires knowledge and dedicated design tools enabling designers to make conscious design choices during the design process. In this paper, we present an anticipation method aimed to support awareness of designers about critical issues related to the use of personal data in the project of complex technology-based systems and services. The paper reports the main features of the methods and of the research activity that generated our approach. Furthermore, we illustrate the results obtained applying the anticipation method on a case study, the MEMoSa project. The case study refers to an innovative service offering tailored services for safer driving; this research involved several partners, including a telecommunication company, and insurance offerings services for safer driving. The case study supports the validation of the anticipation method and the discussion of its potentials.