9. Sources

In this chapter we look specifically at the ‘data’ aspect of big data. Regardless of the volume, velocity, variety and veracity of the data (the big data four “V”s), it must be accessed, processed and stored–all of which offer their own unique challenges in a big data environment. Big data often draws upon a wide variety of different sources, usually in different systems and structures but, as we discuss in this chapter, there are some immutable characteristics of data regardless of how it is stored. To this end we explore a number of data classification alternatives. But what happens when the situation is reversed? When an organisation provides data to many individuals or sub-contractors and asks them to process the data? In this chapter we discuss the relatively new concept of Crowdsourcing and ask, “What is actually happening when organisations, in effect, outsource to many?” We also investigate the thorny issue of data quality, arguably data’s most important attribute, and the one that, even today, absorbs the time of most data scientists. Lastly, this chapter examines the question of data ownership. Who owns your medical records or your bank statements? If you buy something online should the vendor have the right to sell your details to a third party? What about the ‘right-to-be-forgotten’?