Names and personal information gathered for Bahá’í activities are considered precious, and should be treated with care and respect, just as we treat our own private information.
Furthermore, some individuals may have privacy or safety concerns—even among members of the same community or family—which the organizers may not be aware of.
As our activities increase, we find ourselves managing ever-larger lists of participants and teams of organizers. For example, a children’s class or a youth camp requires family contact information, in some cases even medical information, which must be kept confidential.
Here are some best practices for handling personal information in electronic documents—such as names, contacts, or age (aka “Personal Identifiable Information”, PII).
It’s easy to share electronic documents—sometimes a little too easy. For example, it’s tempting to make documents readable to “Anyone with the link.” But once a link is shared, it can go far and wide—well beyond the intended recipients.
When you do share confidential information, be specific about which individuals have access, to be in accord with standards of Bahá’í administration (see below). And be sure you have permission to share the information with those specific individuals.
The names and addresses of Bahá’ís are considered confidential and some believers may have privacy or safety concerns, even between members of the same community or family, about which the Assembly may not be aware.
Guidelines for Local Spiritual Assemblies, Chapter 5: Community Membership Directories.
Forms
When it comes to forms, simplicity is best—only collect what you need. For example, is an email address adequate, or is a phone number also required? Do you need names? If so, both first and last name, or is a first name sufficient?
For example, this form from a community outreach effort doesn’t collect any confidential information, so its results can be shared among its participants.
If you don’t collect sensitive information in the first place, you don’t have to worry about divulging it.
On the other hand, some activities require confidential information from the start. Here is an example registration form for a children’s class. Since this form includes both contact and medical information, whatever is collected will need to be shared only with utmost care, with trusted individuals.
Online forms often store their results in spreadsheets, so the mechanisms for sharing access are the same as for other electronic documents.
Un-sharing and Deleting
When an event has finished, and consultation and learning about it have been completed, it is a good practice to un-share or even delete the data about it. With Google Docs, this can be done through the same Share button that you use to grant access.
Photos
Similar considerations apply to photographs — permission should be granted before using them in publications, and a child’s photo should never be used without a parent or guardian’s written consent. For more guidelines about photos, including photo release forms, see this photo submission page.
Questions?
This article is a work in progress, by the Midwest regional Technical Online Assistance and Support Team (TOAST). Please email questions or suggestions to toast@midwestbahai.org—we would love to hear from you!