A "decentralized market of personal data based on blockchain" sounds complicated to put together. But Wibson, created by an Argentine in 2017, offers technology that provides financial incentives for consumers to securely sell their private information, which in general they hand over to large companies in exchange for their "free" platforms. Without sacrificing privacy, the project was born from the Grandata team.
What is the novelty?
From today, the Android mobile app, the token known as WIB and the data platform in Argentina, Spain, and the United Kingdom are available.
Wibson allows consumers to sell their personal data directly to technology platforms, advertisers, marketing specialists, academics and researchers. In the Wibson market, consumers decide when and to whom they sell their data based on transparent, market-driven offers that clearly describe the requested data, the price, the intended use and the data buyer.
"Consumer data is now the most valuable asset in the world," said Mat Travizano, co-founder and CEO of Wibson. "The platform and the Wibson token provide consumers with an easy way to benefit from the personal data they create every day, while also having ownership rights over their personal information."
The company has received funds from DGG Capital, Kenetic Capital and the investment arm of Telefónica, Wayra, among others.
"The data is driving the growth of the world's largest companies, but new models such as Wibson's are emerging to reshape the space," said Chema Alonso, Telefónica's data director. "With all the development around personal data, Wibson is building an impressive team that focuses on a future where consumers demand control of their data."
Wibson offers data buyers direct access to authentic validated consumer data and clear consent for use in fully transparent and market-based transactions. There are three types of participants in the Wibson data market:
Data marketers: people who seek to take advantage of their personal data in a reliable, transparent and market-oriented environment.
Data buyers: companies and other entities, such as academic researchers and good social practices, who want to buy authentic and validated data directly from consumers.
Notaries: organizations that can verify and validate the authenticity and accuracy of personal data and thus arbitrate disputes fairly and consistently.
The interaction of these three roles is governed by intelligent contracts within the Wibson network that is implemented in the Ethereum Blockchain.
With Wibson, data from data vendors remain on their own devices until they decide to sell them, and only then their encrypted data is transferred directly to the buyer. Wibson never receives data from consumers or stores it on their servers. The Wibson market organizes transactions based on transparent, well-defined offers that describe the terms of how the data will be used. Once a transaction is confirmed through an intelligent contract managed by blockchain, individuals receive a direct and secure payment on their Wibson token wallet mobile application.