2020 Disclosure Avoidance System: Frequently Asked Questions

Answers to questions about Disclosure Avoidance and the 2020 Census.

2020 Disclosure Avoidance System Updates

View the latest updates on the development of the 2020 Disclosure Avoidance System.

2020 Census Data Products

Learn more about ongoing planning for the 2020 Census data products and how to provide feedback on the 2010 Demonstration Data Products.

ACS Updates on Disclosure Avoidance and Release Plans

The U.S. Census Bureau is on track to release the 2019 American Community Survey (ACS) 1-year estimates as scheduled Sept. 17, 2020.

Modernizing Disclosure Avoidance: A Multipass Solution to Postprocessing Error

In our last blog, we discussed the feedback we received from the data user community about demonstration data released last fall that were produced using the interim version of the 2020 Disclosure Avoidance System (DAS).

Modernizing Disclosure Avoidance: What We've Learned, Where We Are Now

We want to highlight some of the feedback we have received and how we are using it to improve the Disclosure Avoidance System (DAS) that will be used for the 2020 Census.

Census Bureau Works With Data Users to Protect 2020 Census Data Products

The Census Bureau’s mission is “to serve as the nation’s leading provider of quality data about its people and economy.” As an agency, we take this responsibility seriously.

Balancing Privacy and Accuracy: New Opportunity for Disclosure Avoidance Analysis

Today, the Census Bureau is releasing demonstration data products designed to help our data user community better understand the disclosure avoidance system.

Census Bureau Continues to Boost Data Safeguards

We are working diligently to keep respondent data strictly confidential by implementing differential privacy for our 2020 Census data products.

Disclosure Avoidance and the 2018 Census Test: Release of the Source Code

The 2020 Census marks the first time that any federal government statistical agency applied the rigorous rule of differential privacy.

Census Bureau Adopts Cutting Edge Privacy Protections for 2020 Census

The Census Bureau takes seriously its legal and professional obligation to safeguard the information it gathers from the public.

The Balancing Act of Producing Accurate and Confidential Statistics

Several months ago, Dr. John Abowd, our chief scientist at the Census Bureau, blogged about the need for disclosure avoidance measures and the considerations that went into our decision to implement differential privacy.

Protecting the Confidentiality of America’s Statistics: Ensuring Confidentiality and Fitness-for-Use

In my last blog, I described the Census Bureau’s work to modernize how we protect respondent data in the statistics we publish.

Protecting the Confidentiality of America’s Statistics: Adopting Modern Disclosure Avoidance Methods at the Census Bureau

The U.S. Census Bureau’s commitment to data stewardship—protecting respondent privacy and confidentiality at every stage of the data lifecyle—is grounded in law that is straightforward, robust, and strong.

Challenges Facing the Disclosure Review Board

Scientists from the Census Bureau describe the importance of research in survey design, methodology, modeling, record linkage, confidentiality protection, etc.