The Federal Government isn’t having a good run when it comes to data, especially after last week’s revelation that Medicare details are up for sale on the dark web.

The latest Essential poll has found that while nearly two in three Australians trust security agencies to safely store personal data, they don’t believe the Government would do so.

So while 64% say the Australian Federal Police, among other agencies, are trusted, only 52% say the Government would do so. And 66% don’t have any trust in telecommunications companies and internet service providers.

The new numbers come alongside some alarming statistics regarding Australians’ security: more than 20% of Aussies say they’ve had a credit card number stolen, and 14% say they’ve been the victim of online fraud.

Meanwhile in Europe, nine European cities including Amsterdam have joined forces in an exciting project that will help share information and create new ways to innovate with public data.

SCORE, or Smart Cities and Open Data Re-use, will see nine different cities exchange public sector information with no specific requirements for how that data is issued, other than referencing where it came from.

The idea behind the project is that the data can be used to help inform city services like traffic flow and carbon dioxide emissions, with the hope that each city will be able to get benefits that it wouldn’t be able to on its own.

“Open data will enable us to rapidly achieve sustainability goals and create an attractive city that facilitates and improves the lives of Gothenburg residents,” said Maria Adahl, SCORE project manager, in a statement.

Also in the European Union, CIO has an update on the Union’s new data protection regulations and how CIOs are moving millions into preparing for them. Myles Suer writes a brief of what the rules are, why they are so important, and what companies need to do to stay on top of them.

For example, the GDPR mandates that person data is protected “by design and be default”. Meeting that policy means that privacy needs to be at the beginning of any data policy.

“It needs to be a consideration during all possible uses of information and enterprise policies should govern data at all touch points. Organizations need to focus on privacy protection throughout the data flow, both internally and externally,” writes Suer. This is especially Important for International businesses, as any business that holds data about EU citizens on Its servers will be subject to the new laws.

In other news…

It’s an exciting time here at Data Republic with more people joining our ranks. This month Steve Prestidge has joined as Chief Revenue Officer, bringing a wealth of knowledge from his roles at Dell, Getty Images and ReachLocal.

Data Republic CEO and co-founder Paul McCarney welcomed Steve’s appointment and said his arrival will be a “coup”, and that he will “help us take full advantage of the growth potential” in the United States.

“Steve’s proven experience in planning and managing business expansion for a wider team will be an integral driver for the company’s overall growth.”

WORTH A READ:

Businesses are so busy collecting all different types of data, they don’t know what to do with it – so they hoard it. A new Inc piece argues that’s the wrong approach, and businesses need to adopt a new sharing mentality to get their data sets out into the market. By doing so, the collective effort of sharing data could unlock trillions in new markets, products and services.

Until next week.