Personal privacy versus the corporate computer.

Americans have long abhorred the specter of a faceless, bureaucratic Big Brother. As computerized personal data systems have grown more and more sophisticated, many people have become concerned about the threat these systems pose to the privacy of individual data subjects. Recently some regulations were passed to counter that threat, and, the authors say, the passage of laws to eliminate it throughout the country is imminent. But the cost of complying with them will be high. After looking at the probable shape of these laws, the authors discuss what the laws' impact will be on five actual personal data systems--consumer credit, health, personnel, insurance, and law enforcement. Finally, they suggest that organizations using or contemplating the use of such systems take four steps in adjusting to the new environment. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]