The Cost of Data Privacy in the Era of Privacy Concerns, and Why Should we All Care.
In February, Jeff Bezos, Amazon`s CEO wrote a blog headlined “No thank you, Mr. Pecker”, accusing AMI (the owner of the National Enquirer, led by David Pecker) of “weaponizing journalistic privileges”. In other words, Bezos claimed the media house threatened him to publish sexual pictures and texts Bezos sent to his mistress, asking him to publicly deny of having any knowledge that AMI`s coverage was politically motivated.
Bezos is the owner of The Washington Post, which had run critical coverage of the Trump administration and the Saudi government; whereas the AMI chairman David Pecker allegedly has a close relationship with the Saudi government.
A following investigation concluded “with high confidence that the Saudis had access to Bezos`s phone and gained private information.”
Why should that matter? In an era of privacy concerns, exploitation of personal data is not an isolated case. However, it opens up a very important subject, that is the issue of data privacy, data control, and data management. Or as Emin Gün Sirer, an American scientist and an Associate Professor at Cornell University pointed out in his tweet: “If Bezos cannot keep his phone safe, none of us can”.
The proliferation of data in recent decades has led to a concerning situation: companies and governments have been rifling through the users´ data streams to gather, monitor, exchange and trade personal data without their knowledge, or consent.
To put a stop to such practices, companies and users are now witnessing a relevant shift. “You own the data” best summarizes a new business model which favors transparency, security and above all, a fairer exchange of data. It is possible due the blockchain, the technology we often refer to as the technology of trust, as it enables safer and securer point-to-point exchange of information.
It should come as no surprise that Gün Sirer is one if its biggest advocates:
-Emin Gün Sirer
What does all that mean for your business? To ensure business continuity, you will need to address similar privacy concerns in your company, and reimagine the part of processes, services, and operations to better fit this shift. To win over the consumers transparency, data ownership, and a stand for digital ethics will soon need to become your distinguishable features.
Need a proof? Even the biggest tech giants that are (or better said, were) known to succeed out of their users´ data, are now slowly adjusting their business models, arguing that personal data should be treated as a possession.
This is why the media giant Facebook renewed their privacy policy, saying that you “own all of the contact and information you post on Facebook” and “can control how it is shared,” and why Apple has made a series of moves to position itself as a privacy provider. And the reason why VKontakte (“Russian Facebook”) has already made a bold move to turn its 100 million users into crypto fans, enabling them to earn crypto for sharing interesting posts and accumulating “likes”.
All that said, blockchain is not a disruptive technology but a foundational technology that can help you reinvent to create new revenue streams, speed up processes and (re)gain trust. Nxxtech`s team and blockchain technology are here to help you make this transition a reality!
