Abstract

Remote data access as defined as the possibility for a researcher to access and evaluate restricted micro data via a secure internet connection from his home desktop computer at any time has not been implemented by a German Research Data Centre (RDC) so far. Privacy regulations and especially the problem of admission control are reasons why German RDCs are not able to offer restricted data via remote data access to the research community. By initiating the “RDC-in-RDC” approach the Research Data Centre (FDZ) of the German Federal Employment Agency (BA) at the Institute for Employment Research (IAB) in Nuremberg, Germany, aims to bring data access in Germany closer to the ideal perception of remote access. The basic idea of this approach is to allow data access from designated institutions with comparable standards but locations other than Nuremberg.In a first step, access to BA and IAB data will be granted from four sites in Germany and one site in the US. Moreover, the RDC-in-RDC approach represents a change of paradigms in two respects. First, data access will be decentralised and the FDZ literally brings its data closer to the researchers. Second, data of the FDZ will be accessible from abroad and the dissemination of micro data will be no longer restricted to national borders. The RDC-in-RDC approach may therefore be regarded as a first step towards remote access in Germany and may also represent a blue print for an intensified international data sharing.