Dear SSA et al.,

Due to clearance issues (among others), the joint SSA Canberra/R Data Scientists meeting has been postponed until September. Fortunately, council member Pauline has stepped up to the plate and will be giving a talk, although note it is on a Wednesday instead of a Tuesday.

Date: Wednesday 31 July

5.15pm Refreshments in Foyer, Ground level, Building 145 (Where is the Hanna Neumann (MSI) building?)

6.00pm Presentation in Room 1.33, Building 145  

7.30pm After the talk, there will be a dinner at China Plate, Kambri precinct ANU (Restaurant; noting this links to the one in Kingston; Map for location, which is relatively close to the Hanna Neumann building).

Please RSVP Francis Hui (SSA Canberra or reply to this email directly) by Tuesday 30 July if you would like to attend the dinner. 

Speaker: Pauline O'Shaughnessy, SMAS, University of Wollongong

Topic: On Preserving the Privacy of Our Data

Abstract:

In the age of big data, data can easily be collected and accessed. Data users can use statistical tests and procedures to gain statistical information, such as means, estimate of the regression parameter etc., for research and decision-making. On the other hand, data often contains sensitive information, such as personal identifying attributes, or annual profit of a company. This poses a serious security issue if this sensitive information is used maliciously. It is of great interest to develop solutions which simultaneously safeguard the values of data, and optimize accuracy of the acquired statistical information. This process is referred to as Data Privacy.

Research on Data Privacy was initiated by computer scientists and it has been studied extensively. Unfortunately, most existing techniques involve encryption, which is computationally demanding and has limitations in application. In comparison, research on Data Privacy using statistical methods is still in its early stage of development, and it complements its Computer Science counterparts with fast computation and less restrictions in application for data security. This talk gives an overview of research in data privacy from separate fields, and two case studies will highlight the contribution of statistics in the world of data privacy.

Biography:

Pauline is lecturer at the School of Mathematics and Statistics at the University of Wollongong. Previously she was part of the Statistical Consulting Unit at ANU, and also completed at PhD there under the supervision of Prof. Alan Welsh. She has extensive experience in designing glasshouse/laboratory experiments and filed trials, survey design and analyzing data from complex experiments. Pauline's statistical methodological interest is in the area of estimation and inference of large complex data, i.e., longitudinal, spatial, multivariate longitudinal data, inference on variance components, and resampling methods.

Website link: http://www.statsoc.org.au/branches/canberra/can-branch-meetings/