When we release information and only a small number of users use that information, we’ve generated—as a government—an informational asymmetry. That’s not cool. We shouldn’t be doing that. We need to engage more broadly than we currently are, even if the people on the good end of that informational asymmetry are well-intentioned actors—whether they’re civic activists or private citizens or academics or educators or whatever. It’s still not right. That’s a bad impact, in my view.
And then there are obvious problems, like a stalker. If I want to root around about person A, B, and C, it’s infinitely easier now than it ever was. And then misunderstanding the information is the other problem that’s big. It’s just data. They’re just LEGOs. It’s not the building; they’re bricks. It’s not the building.
See the full article here: http://www.mckinsey.com/insights/public_sector/Learning_from_New_York_Citys_open_data_effort?cid=other-eml-alt-mgi-mck-oth-1405