Art Installation Tests How Much Personal Data You're Willing to Share

Privacy bytes? A new installation by Martin Hertig, called “Sensible Data,” hopes to explore the way we give out personal information about ourselves online.

Users can take a picture of themselves in exchange for a computer generated portrait, send a quick email to receive stats on their mood, age, gender, and beauty, and push a button for a confirmation stamp.

It’s fun, easy, and those who complete all the tasks receive a neat identity card—but there's one catch. While participants are having fun, a computer is collecting personal data, building a “passport” from the information provided. For example: that seemingly innocent button? It’s recording the user's fingerprint.

On his website, Hertig explains, “This project aims to explore the issues of ‘confidence’ surrounding data collection systems: fun in exchange for personal data.”

The installation is meant to be simultaneously fun and unsettling. In the end, Hertig adds, “The user receives also an email from the installation, sending him all the data of a previous user (fingerprint, photo and email) that matches based on an absurd criteria (The amount of lines of the portrait).”

Take a look at the project at work below:

Sensible Data ECAL/Martin Hertig from ECAL on Vimeo.