How does privacy (Privatsphäre) relate to — but differ from — confidentiality?
Privacy is a person's right to control their own sphere and personal data; confidentiality is a technical property of keeping data secret.
Privacy is the non-public space in which a person freely develops their personality, free from outside interference (it can be limited for legitimate public interest, e.g. criminal prosecution). It centres on informational self-determination — your control over your data.
Confidentiality is the broader, neutral property: keeping any data secret from the unauthorised. Privacy is related to confidentiality but adds the human-rights, "whose data and who decides" dimension.
Contrast of perspective:
| Info/Cyber security | Privacy | |
|---|---|---|
| Protects | IP, business data | PII, PHI (personal/health data) |
| Attacker | hackers (outside) | hackers and insiders |
| Attacker's goal | $$$ | YOU |
Tip: Examples of privacy in practice: the secrecy of correspondence (Briefgeheimnis) and consent management on the web.