Categories: Technology

Companies make millions selling your data, why not sell it yourself?

Facebook and other big companies are taking your data and selling it off to third parties. It’s one of those things that we all know but in a I-don’t-really-want-to-think-about-it kind of way.

I remember the early days of Facebook, MySpace, or Twitter when you would be asked to put in your information – DOB, hometown, place of work, etc. – and link as many accounts as you could without even caring, or considering where and what this data might be used for.

This has given social media companies the right to track and analyze what websites we visit, when we visit them, and how often.

Social media companies have been making a killing off us, selling all this information off to marketers and advertisers to using the old Pavlovian trick of conditioning us to buy buy buy.

But if it keeps showing up on my newsfeed, I must need it!

Nah, you don’t. But what you do need is a way to take back the control over your own data.

Datum, based in Switzerland, Singapore, and Hong Kong, governs the Datum Network, a place where users can share or sell their data on their own terms from places such as Facebook, Youtube, or Twitter. Essentially, it gives you the power to decide who has access to your data, and helps you make money from it, whilst preserving your anonymity.

Because our data is apparently very valuable, priceless even, and there is a lot of it, so it’s no surprise that major companies have been taking advantage of it, but with Datum, now it’s your turn.

The platform gives users the power to make sure they know exactly where their data is going and what it is being used for. It provides the methods for independence to decide who can use your data and to what end. It gives users a chance to monetize their data on their own terms.

The Datum app offers a simple and aesthetic interface where users can backup their data on an encrypted and secure network. This gives you the chance to share your data with whoever you want, including nonprofit organizations such as researchers and NGOs. In return for your data, Datum will reward you with DAT tokens, which can then be used to purchase data for yourself.

We might not like the fact that corporations are using our data to make money. But in the digital age, where everyone is connected to the internet and conversation is just a screen tap away, we haven’t had much of a choice about it. With Datum, all of that has changed, and it’s now our time to take the power, and the coins, back.

Nicolas Waddell

Nicolas has spent time in Asia, Canada and Colombia watching people and wondering just what the heck they'd do without their phones; but only because he wonders the same of himself.

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View Comments

SoftCroo says:

July 9, 2018 at 11:53 PM

I think it's a good idea because large companies Like Facebook, Twitter, and Pinterest dominate the market!

Thanks for sharing.