Managing Digital Security and Privacy Risk, a background report for the June 2016 OECD Ministerial on the Digital Economy, discusses how increased connectivity and data-driven innovation have brought about significant economic and social opportunities while changing the scale and scope of digital security and privacy challenges.

These developments highlight the need for an evolution in policies and practices to build and maintain trust in the digital economy. Building on key messages of the OECD Digital Security Risk Recommendation and the OECD Privacy Guidelines, the report articulates why an approach grounded in risk management is essential to ensure that measures are appropriate to and commensurate with the risk. It also examines what further work is needed to understand how public policy can work jointly with private sector to overcome barriers and address the special challenges faced by small and medium enterprises (SMEs).