Workshop DwB, Lausanne, March 2014 Leo Engberts, accountmanager International Affairs Accreditation Data Service Statistics Netherlands

Accreditation for access microdata –Accreditation necessary for the security of micro data –Level of Security depends on the risk of revelation –Levels of sensitivity of microdata Levels of security 2

Levels of sensitivity, levels of security 3 ‘Open data’ or ‘Public Use Files’: data without any danger of revealing. Mostly available via Internet. ‘Scientific use data’: only available for researchers from universities. No direct identifiers. Mostly controlled by Data Archive Institutions. ‘Secure use data’: the most sensitive data bases. Only ‘direct identifiers’ (as names) are removed. ‘Key-fields’ to connect dbases. Controlled by National Statistical Institutes (NSI’s), sometimes by a National Statistical Organizations (NSO’s). ‘Confidential use data’: this term combines the areas of the ‘Secure use data’ and ‘Scientific use data’. The use of ‘Confidential use data is often the cause of confusion. Even in the latest Regulation557/2013 of Eurostat this term was not used in the right way!

Access to Secure Use Files 3 ways to protect Secure Use Files: –Protect Secure Use Files to a level of Scientific Use Files (less profitable for researchers, extra work for NSI) –No direct access to data: Remote Execution (less profitable for researchers, labor-intensive for NSI) –Secure the environment of the Secure Use Files (profit for researcher is optimal, no extra work for NSI, CBS has chosen for this system) 4

Dutch Law and Regulation 2 important Sections of the Statistical Law 2003 about protecting microdata and the possibility to give access. –Section 37 guarantees our citizens that the bureau will protect individual information of people and companies. –Section 41 allows our Director-General under strict conditions to provide or give access to a set of data for scientific research. Because our DG cannot be hold responsible for data that have left the NSI-surrounding, he made a regulation which forbid that secure use data leave the NSI. 5

Changing the Law? To make it possible to transmit Secure Use Files it is not possible to change the Statistical Law: the willingness of the people to corporate and the possibility for CBS to use all registrations is based on the condition that CBS is commited to protect these data. Further on there are other Laws as the Law on the Protection of Persons Information that forbid that CBS transmit Secure Use Data. 6

Problem for Transnational Simultaneaous Analses? At the moment it is! But at the moment new technics are developed as SMC, which made it possible to do simultaneous analyses with dbases of different countries without the data leave their source! Several NSI’s are working with universities on these technics. CBS (Netherlands) and SCB (Sweden) are working on a RA- pilot with this technic as a last step. 7

Dutch Law and Regulation 2 important Sections of the Statistical Law 2003 about protecting microdata and the possibility to give access. –Section 37 guarantees our citizens that the bureau will protect individual information of people and companies. –Section 41 allows our Director-General under strict conditions to provide or give access to a set of data for scientific research. Because our DG cannot be hold responsible for data that have left the NSI-surrounding, he made a regulation which forbid that secure use data leave the NSI. 8

Access via Data Service Centre (1) Only researchers of institutions mentioned in Section 41 can get access to the OS/RA environment of our Data Service Centre –a. a university, within the meaning of the Higher Education and Research Act; –b. an organisation or institution for academic research established by law; –c. planning offices established by or by virtue of the law; –d. the Community statistical agency and national statistical agencies of the member states of the European Union; –e. research departments of ministries and other departments, organisations and institutions, in so far as the CCS has given its consent. 9

Access via Data Service Centre (2) 1.The external researcher has to fill in an application form (on the CBS-site). 2.Access is given per project: a proper project plan is needed, which contains the necessary datafiles. 3.During an intake permission is granted and also advise is given about the use of data. 4.Forms have to be filled in for a contract which has to signed by a representative of the research institution. 5.All participating researchers and their project leader have to sign a security declaration. 6.Every researcher needs a fingerprint card for access 10

Getting output available –The researcher can work freely with the databases he/she get access to. The data are on the screen. –Datasets from outside can be imported via the Data Service Centre. –Printing nor mailing is possible –Output can only be put in the Export-map of the Service. –The output will be checked by the Service on revelation only within 24 hours. –Approved output is sent to a private mailbox. If not approved, the researcher will be informed. 11

Detailed information All forms for application, accreditation and security are available separately. Questions? 12