BIDSonym

BIDSonym automates pseudo-anonymization of neuroimaging datasets as a BIDSapp to reduce participant re-identification risk and ensure compliance with Ethics Review Boards and data-sharing platforms.

Key Features:

• Automated Pseudo-Anonymization: Automates the pseudo-anonymization of neuroimaging datasets to reduce participant re-identification risk.
• Support for Multiple De-Identification Procedures: Accommodates multiple de-identification strategies across different datasets and research needs.
• Comprehensive Metadata Handling: Processes neuroimaging files and accompanying metadata, gathering and evaluating metadata to assess potentially sensitive information.
• Reproducibility and Scalability: Leverages the Brain Imaging Data Structure (BIDS) to enable reproducible application across studies and is agnostic to dataset scale.
• In-Depth Sensitivity Assessment: Produces outputs that enable detailed evaluations of sensitive information within datasets.

Scientific Applications:

• Ethical-compliant Data Sharing: Supports sharing of neuroimaging datasets that adhere to Ethics Review Boards and data-sharing platform requirements by reducing re-identification risk.
• Open Science and Reproducibility: Standardizes pseudo-anonymization within the BIDS framework to support open science, reproducibility, and sustainability in neuroimaging studies.
• Privacy-preserving Large-scale Studies: Enables sharing of both small-scale studies and large-scale neuroimaging projects while preserving participant privacy.

Methodology:

BIDSonym is implemented as a BIDSapp that processes neuroimaging files and accompanying metadata, gathers and evaluates metadata information, and produces outputs for in-depth sensitivity assessment.