Organizations working in child protection handle some of the most sensitive data imaginable. The stakes of getting it wrong are extraordinarily high.
Minimum Necessary Data
The foundational principle of privacy in child protection is minimum necessary data: collect and retain only what is genuinely needed for the legitimate purpose of protecting children. Building data minimization into system design from the start is far more effective than trying to enforce it through policies alone.
Cross-Agency Data Sharing
Effective child protection often requires sharing information across agencies. The organizations that do it well start with clear agreements about what data can be shared for what purposes, then build technical systems that enforce those agreements.