What is the public benefit of sharing personal data? Archives - Involve

"Different government departments and organisations, at both national and local level, have always shared personal data about citizens. Data sharing of this kind can be for a wide variety of reasons, for example to ensure that patients get the best care as they transfer between their GP and hospital, to deliver more effective services, to identify fraud in the tax system or to allow social services to intervene quickly in child protection cases. However, the collection and use of personal data by the state raises understandable and legitimate concerns about privacy, data security and intrusive government surveillance."