In the AI era, protecting privacy is how we protect truth 

By Dr. Hajar El Haddaoui, Director General, Digital Cooperation Organization

Data Privacy Day, marked annually on January 28, can no longer be treated as a routine reminder to update passwords or skim a privacy policy.

In 2026, privacy has become something far more fundamental: a critical line of defence against misinformation in an AI-driven digital economy.

Global debate rightly focuses on content moderation, platform accountability, and foreign interference. Yet one equally serious vulnerability receives far less attention. Misinformation is now effective not only because it is false, but because it is personalized. 

Artificial intelligence enables falsehoods to be tailored to individual identities, fears, behaviors, and beliefs. The more precisely misinformation is targeted, the harder it becomes to detect, resist, and correct. This is where data privacy shifts from a technical concern to a direct challenge to truth itself. 

This shift is no longer theoretical. In recent years, deepfake audio has been used to impersonate company executives, while AI-generated messages posing as world leaders have circulated in local languages, tailored to neighborhood concerns and shared through personal networks. These fabrications often spread faster than fact-checking systems can respond. In each case, the effectiveness of the deception relied not only on AI-generated content, but on access to personal data that enabled precise targeting. 

This Data Privacy Day, the imperative is clear. Governments must modernize privacy protections for the AI era. Businesses must treat personal data as a trust obligation, not a commercial asset. And individuals must demand real transparency and meaningful control over how their information is used. 

AI does not just generate misinformation. It targets it. 

What distinguishes today’s misinformation is not simply realism, but precision. AI systems can draw on browsing behavior, geolocation, interests, and social connections to predict what will trigger attention, fear, or trust.  

This influence is often subtle. False alerts designed to resemble local public safety warnings. Impersonated messages that appear to come from a familiar institution or community leader. Deepfake video or audio that circulates within trusted networks before verification can catch up. When narratives are tailored in this way, they stop resembling mass propaganda and begin to feel personal and familiar. 

That personalization is what makes AI-enabled misinformation so difficult to counter. It fragments the information space, delivering different versions of reality to different audiences. In such an environment, protecting privacy is not only about safeguarding individuals. It is about protecting the integrity of the public sphere. 

Without strong governance, AI will continue to amplify bias, exploit personal data, and scale misinformation. 

Trust is the foundation of the digital economy, and privacy sustains it 

Trust underpins the digital economy. Privacy is what sustains that trust. 

People and businesses will only participate fully in digital systems if they are confident their data is protected and their interactions are secure. That confidence is under growing strain as sensitive personal data circulates across increasingly complex digital ecosystems, alongside more sophisticated forms of manipulation. 

Trust cannot rely on assurances alone. It requires enforceable rights, clear responsibilities, and modern privacy governance. As recognized in the Digital Cooperation Organization’s Privacy Principles, strong data protection is essential infrastructure in this new age. 

Ethical AI must become the default 

Ethical AI is not a constraint on innovation. It is a precondition for scale and sustainability. 

The DCO’s Principles for Ethical AI are clear. Accountability, transparency, explainability, and privacy are not abstract ideals. They are practical requirements for digital systems that people and markets can rely on. 

Transparency is critical. People must know when AI systems are being used, what data they rely on, and for what purpose. That visibility enables accountability when AI is deployed to influence behavior or decision-making at scale. 

Shared responsibility: what must change now 

If personal data is the fuel for AI-enabled misinformation, safeguarding privacy cannot rest with any single actor. 

Governments must update data protection frameworks to reflect AI-driven targeting and cross-border data flows. Businesses must move beyond compliance and embed data stewardship into corporate governance, product design, and risk management. And individuals must be empowered with genuine transparency and meaningful control over their data. 

Multilateral cooperation matters. Privacy standards that cannot interoperate across borders will struggle to protect users in a global digital economy. Shared principles, aligned governance, and practical cooperation are essential. 

Privacy protects people, and it protects truth 

This Data Privacy Day, we must recognize a simple reality. When privacy erodes, trust erodes. And when trust erodes, misinformation thrives. 

If personal data continues to be exploited without clear limits, AI systems will increasingly reward manipulation over accuracy, and speed over integrity. Preventing that outcome does not require stopping innovation. It requires governing it responsibly. 

Artificial intelligence will continue to evolve. Whether it strengthens or undermines the digital economy depends on the choices governments, businesses, and societies make today. 

Protecting privacy is no longer just about protecting data. It is about protecting truth.