Why Confidential Data Becomes Important Generic Information

Many people have asked how is it that generally-known personal data can be treated confidentially and yet be used for the public good.

Let's look at some examples.

First of all, you are a person with needs that you can't always anticipate.

For instance, you are the result of two people contributing their life substances to create a living being - you were born somewhere, and in your infancy your needs were met by those around you.  Many of you were born in hospitals or other public facilities.  Thus, you are here because people of conceiving/birthing years brought you into the world and probably used buildings, roads and other portions of our civilisation that belong to the general population.

Thus, by knowing everyone's age, including yours, governments and private companies can look at compiled demographic data (which is no longer tied directly to you) and guess how many babies will be born in a year.  From their guesses (scientifically calculated, of course), they can create budgets from which they build more prenatal, birthing, postnatal and childcare centers.

From age-related demographics, many needs of yours can be anticipated such as: your education, including schools, playgrounds and other facilities designed for young people; the roads you'll travel for school, work, and play; nursing homes; military/civil service, including state and national training, housing and veterans facilities; even infrastructure needs such as sewer, water and telecommunications; and of course, death-related services, including funeral homes and cemeteries.

Why are names important?  The collection of names is for your benefit in the long-run.  Although your personal data is kept confidential for many decades, eventually your data is available for review by the general population, including those who perform genealogical research.  Which means that gender and race are just as important as your name in helping those who come after you to find clues to their family's path around this planet.

The same goes for other information such as the ownership condition of your home.  As we know from recent history, the home financing industry is an important part of our marketplace.  Knowing how many people have mortgages or home equity loans can help our government clearly demonstrate the need to create plans to protect homeowners from extremely risky mortgage financing.

I'm sure you can think of other examples of why demographic data is important for you, your family and your friends.  Generally, though, if we know how and how much the population changes, governments and companies can prepare to provide products and services for your benefit.

For other questions about why census data is important for you, please read the FAQ.

Because we are alive, we all have needs.  The better informed we are as citizens of a nation and customers in the marketplace, the better our needs are met in a timely, satifactory manner.