The right to privacy in big data era: professionals narratives in the European Union

There is a growing debate today about human rights and Big Data. This paper explores the expectations of professionals involved in the transnational exchange of data, forensic geneticists, and stakeholders from different fields about the inclusion of Big Data in the transnational criminal investigation. Based on a qualitative methodology of content analysis of interviews, the objective is to access the meanings that these professionals attribute to Big Data as a potential criminal investigation technique, within the scope of their professional activities. Despite the promise of the potential of Big Data in terms of effectiveness and efficiency, their inclusion in criminal investigations imposes ethical and human rights issues that need to be addressed. I conclude that the interviewees refer to the difficulty of finding the balance between guaranteeing the rights, freedoms, and guarantees with the promotion of public safety; the ethics of criminal investigation; and violations of the right to privacy.