Symantec Corp. (NASDAQ: SYMC), the world’s leading cyber security company, today announced the opening of a new privacy research center, based in Saarbrucken, Germany. The new location’s effort is two-fold; to give consumers greater control over their personal data and their online “footprints,” and provide governments and corporations additional tools to help them be responsible custodians of data they handle. Focus topics for research include a consumer’s right to be forgotten, behavioral intelligence, learned behaviors (AI), image recognition, rights related to minors, reputation, identity, and responsible anonymity.

One of the most critical issues for businesses and governments is the management of customer’s and consumer’s personal data. Recent headlines highlight that possession of consumer data comes with high risk, compounded by new data privacy regulations such as GDPR. Symantec’s research initiatives are intended to focus on best practices with respect to ownership, protection, and governance of consumer data.

Consumers are also taking responsibility for their data, their identity, and their behavioral trail left in cyberspace. Symantec is committed to researching and creating a new era of online protections by safeguarding consumer rights, allowing individuals to navigate and transact in cyberspace, empowered by technologies that effectively manage and secure their digital footprint.

“Privacy is the defining issue of this generation,” said Greg Clark, chief executive officer at Symantec. “Just as a vehicle leaves exhaust fumes along its path, as consumers we are continuously leaving online footprints that trace back to and compromise our own identity. We’re at a point in history where there is a serious and uncontrolled threat to one’s identity and privacy. As the leader in the cyber security industry, we feel immense responsibility to help our customers safeguard their identity, to protect and defend them from nefarious actors and to give them more power over their own information and how it is used.”

The result of a public-private partnership, the lab will be located near The CISPA (Center for IT-Security, Privacy and Accountability) – Helmholtz-Center i.G. GmbH, a newly founded research institution also located in Saarbrucken, Germany.

Dr. Udo Helmbrecht, executive director of the European Network and Information Security Agency (ENISA), said, “The choice of location validates the excellent reputation of Saarbrucken in the area of research and comes at a time when the EU is promoting the notion of EU Cybersecurity Competency centers, which will contribute to the competitiveness of European research and innovation.”

The new research lab fortifies Symantec’s global research organization, Symantec Research Labs (SRL). SRL is a well-established network that has taken on ambitious projects with long-term implications for a society that increasingly lives online. Because of this shift, Symantec has focused on technology that awards consumers more security and control over their online lives, and top-tier protection for corporate data that is increasingly mined for profit.

SRL’s work will be augmented by the partnership with The CISPA – Helmholtz-Center i.G. GmbH, an institution well-known for its privacy research. Their collaborative research is expected to revolutionize consumers’ rights to privacy online.

“The founding of a Symantec Research Lab close to the CISPA is a major coup for the State of Saarland as an IT location,” said the Prime Minister of Saarland, Tobias Hans. “Symantec’s decision to establish a research lab here in Saarbrucken again demonstrates that we were right in putting our emphasis on the cutting-edge domain of cybersecurity. It is truly impressive that CISPA has managed to attract such a leading global player on site right after its founding.”

To learn more about the lab and Symantec’s research, visit Symantec Research Labs

About Symantec

Symantec Corporation (NASDAQ: SYMC), one of the world's leading cyber security company, helps organizations, governments and people secure their most important data wherever it lives. Organizations across the world look to Symantec for strategic, integrated solutions to defend against sophisticated attacks across endpoints, cloud and infrastructure. Likewise, a global community of more than 50 million people and families rely on Symantec's Norton and LifeLock product suites to protect their digital lives at home and across their devices. Symantec operates one of the world's largest civilian cyber intelligence networks, allowing it to see and protect against the most advanced threats. For additional information, please visit www.symantec.com or connect with us on Facebook, Twitter, and LinkedIn.