Facebook’s data scandal, data mishandling, or whatever you want to call it has caused all kinds of commentary about privacy issues. Not to be left out of the discussion is the crypto space and how, if at all, it can help prevent such debacles as what Facebook (NASDAQ:FB) and its users are going through now.
One solution being bandied about as a possible aid is Blockchain. RBC analyst Mitch Steves sat down to discuss the topic on CNBC’s Fast Money Wednesday.
Here’s what he had to say.
Blockchain to the rescue?
Using Blockchain in a Facebook environment can allow people to track what they send and who receives it. Steves used the example of sharing photos:
“Let’s say you wanted to upload a photo. You can tell if it goes to a third party or to someone you didn’t want to see it. You’d be able to track it and make sure it's not shared with someone who gets access to your information."
While this is all fine and good, there is one thing that Blockchain can’t prevent. That’s the ability of the information to be shared in the first place. Steves noted that with the use of Blockchain, people may be able to track the data they share, but they would not be able to stop it from being shared.
Steves added:
“You can 100% track all this stuff. You can see every single transaction. Blockchain would solve the transparency issue, but it would not solve the control issue you have."
Simply, Blockchain would allow for a digital footprint to be created to track data.
The world learned this week that an estimated 50 million Facebook profiles were mined for data by an outfit called Cambridge Analytica. Facebook CEO Mark Zuckerberg on Wednesday issued apologies and vowed to work to prevent such happenings from happening again.
Future of data tracking
Steves said he sees Blockchain being more widely incorporated into platforms such as Facebook’s in the near future.Large tech firms are realizing how vulnerable they are to data breaches.
He mentioned Bloomberg reporting that Google is working on a Blockchain project to support its cloud business.
According to Bloomberg, Google’s parent company, Alphabet (NASDAQ:GOOGL), has been developing its own distributed digital ledger for third parties to be able to post and verify transactions.
When this product will be released is unknown, but the product is expected to help the Internet giant’s cloud service better compete with rivals.
This article appeared first on Cryptovest
