Data protection by design means incorporating privacy safeguards into a product, service, or system from the earliest planning stages, rather than adding them after deployment. It involves considering what personal data is collected, why it is needed, who can access it, and how long it is retained.
In cyber security and privacy engineering, this approach can reduce exposure and misuse by making protective controls part of the system architecture. For example, a wearable camera could use visible recording indicators, minimize captured data, and enforce retention limits. Such safeguards help protect people recorded incidentally, including passers-by, and support responsible handling throughout the device, software, and service layers.