Question 16
Domain 2: Privacy Risk ManagementAn HR screening model excludes applicants from certain ZIP codes because those areas correlate with turnover. What is the strongest privacy and data ethics concern?
Correct answer: A
Explanation
Excluding applicants by ZIP code can use location as a proxy for race, income, or other protected traits, creating disparate impact even without explicit use of those traits. Data ethics and anti-discrimination rules focus on outcomes, so a model that relies on correlated variables may produce "proxy discrimination against protected groups."
Why each option is right or wrong
A. The system may create proxy discrimination against protected groups
ZIP code is a classic proxy variable: under Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964, 42 U.S.C. § 2000e-2, an employment practice can be unlawful if it causes disparate impact on protected classes even without explicit use of race, color, religion, sex, or national origin. Because residential geography often tracks protected characteristics and socioeconomic status, excluding applicants from certain ZIP codes can systematically screen out members of protected groups and create discriminatory outcomes rather than a neutral turnover filter.
B. The model needs more storage capacity
C. The applicant portal lacks a cookie banner
D. The retention schedule may be too short