Planning, hosting or attending an event, whether a conference or a fundraising concert, can present potential risks in our data-driven society, particularly for human rights defenders, journalists and activists. What data is collected, by whom and who has access to it? How is it being used, stored and analysed? How long is it kept and what are our options for opting out? This poses an important question about the responsibility of event organisers to be transparent in informing their participants about their data-use policies in clear and accessible terms. The data from organisers’ accounts can then be used by the platform and third parties – and sometimes the authorities – to compile a history of the organisations’ activities. These websites and apps, however, will inevitably collect data about the organisers and the attendees, which is then aggregated and deployed in marketing and even political profiling. Some of them use free services offered by third parties, while others outsource app development or develop their own apps mostly with the support of third-party companies. Civil society organisations and grass-roots activist groups are increasingly using online platforms and apps for event planning and organising.

Eventbrite tickets on phone