Neuroimaging
Big Data and the Privacy Issue
Li Yao, Ph.D.
Dean and Prof.
College of Information Science and Technology
Beijing Normal University (BNU), China
Outline:
• Background
• Big Data in Neuroimaging
• Privacy and Security
• Future Strategy
1, Background
Beijing Normal University
Washington
Beijing
State Key Lab of Cognitive
Neuroscience and Learning
College of Information
Science and Technology
1, Background
 College of Information Science and Technology
 State Key Lab of Cognitive Neuroscience and Learning
Our lab develops and employs
multiple analytic approaches to
understand the cognitive and
neural mechanisms of brain
development and genetic
constraints. Neuroimaging data
are from multiple sources such
as behavioral, molecular
genetics, EEG, MRI, NIRS.
MRI
EEG
fNIRS
1, Background
(a) Design and acquisition of different kinds of
human neuroimaging data
1, Background
(b) developments and applications of various
analytic approaches
1, Background
(c) Initiation and continued development on
procedures to enhance the learning capacities
using neuro-feedback techniques.
2, Big Data from NeuroImaging
sMRI
fMRI
MRI-DTI
2, Big Data from NeuroImaging
FDG-PET
Reiman, 2010
fNIRs
EEG
2, Big Data from NeuroImaging
Characteristics with 4V
How big the neuroimaging data?
~100,000 locations, measured
simultaneously hundreds of times, resulting
in billions of pairwise relation, collected in
multiple experimental conditions, and from
multiple participants per study.
2, Big Data from NeuroImaging
Imaging header file:
2, Big Data from NeuroImaging
Problems:
Privacy
 How to best protect individual
privacy while making the needed
information available to research?
Security
 How to secure the data on the cloud
or severs that is also an important issue
to private information?
3, Privacy and Security
Current Situation in China:
Privacy and Ethics:
Approved by IRB
Research Consent form
3, Privacy and Security
Security:
Information disclosure
Information encryption
4, Future strategies
strategies to privacy:
 Training and education
 Some techniques: de-faced, demographic
information…
strategies to Security:
 The existing techniques are mature and available.
In my opinion, the most important,
above all of these, the rule, law and
policies need to be made from the
central and local governments.
4, Future strategies
What I am seeking:
(a) techniques on securing the patients or study
participants privacy in handling neuroimaging
and behavior “big data”,
(b) ways to assist government regulatory
agencies’ sharing policy,
(c) understanding the culture and ethics
difference in big data environments between
western countries and China.

What I have to offer:
Expertise in:
(a) design and acquisition different kinds of
human neuro-imaging data,
(b) application of various analytic approaches to
process and understand brain data and their
relations to learning and human behaviors from
patients with Alzheimer’s to people who are
cognitively normal,
(c) initiation and continued development on
procedures to enhance the learning capacities
using real-time neuro-feedback provided by
fMRI and EEG techniques.

Thanks for your
attention
Li Yao,
Email: yaoli@bnu.edu.cn