What is Happening with Our Personal Data?
Our personal data can be at risk if proper care and the correct security measures are not taken. When we browse or shop online, we have to enter our name, address, and user credentials. This data is saved and collected by different organizations, so-called data brokers. They create individual profiles for users for marketing and monetization purposes. A data profile can consist of 1,500 different personal pieces of information, including, sexuality, medical background, age, income, browsing history, political affiliations, and much more. These companies keep records of a big part of the world’s population.
In most cases, the users have never given their consent for this personal data to be traced, stored, or sold. They have no control over what their data is being used for or who has access to it. Big data corporations make profits by buying and selling user data. Their interest groups are big and powerful organizations and governments, and never the people.
What about undesirable nationals?
Personal data is being collected, analyzed, and used in various ways. But do we really know who has access to our data and how they got it? When you sign up for a website, like social media, willingly or unwillingly, you agree to share your personal info in exchange for access to their services and content. Although it seems that the registration process is free, but by agreeing to their Terms of Use, you have given them the permissions they need to make money from your data.
Governments are also interested in what you do online. Shocking, right!? Internet technologies now enable them to view our private conversations, financials, and areas of interest. Many companies are legally required to store this data just in case government agencies might need them in the future. Even though they claim that this is done to fight crime, corruption, or terrorism, we have all seen how ‘enemies of the state’ have been treated in the past. Personal data can be used to target undesirable citizens.
But that can all change. We have the means now to protect our data, control it, and share it only with whom we want.
Introducing Alre?
Alre is aiming to build a data management network where users will be financially rewarded for sharing their personal data and receive a digital identity. It is an organization that monetizes and manages data. The shared data is protected and fully under the control of its user. The data can be shared only if the user allows and gives his approval.
Digital data has become very valuable. Alre envisions a platform where network participants will be able to buy and sell data while guaranteeing privacy and accuracy throughout the entire process. Different kinds of stakeholders will become part of Alre. From individual users to big corporations. These users will be able to conduct data-related business deals thanks to the power of blockchain technology and smart contracts.
Alre can be used in different markets, but the two main points of attention are the information industry market and the financial refugee market.
Who Can Use Alre?
Alre offers a platform for safe storage and management of data. The company refers to this information as “###data banks###”. Alre can scan multiple sources and connect broken data with the rightful user in the Alre data bank. Clients can access this data or build information systems based on it through apps provided by Alre, or their own native APIs.
The development team anticipates that the network will have three main purposes:
- Input of data
- Storage of data
- Utilization of data
Input of data
Customers can store any type of personal information such as name, gender, phone numbers, addresses, links to social media, private texts, etc. Based on the type of data and how often it has been used, they will receive a certain number of tokens as a participation reward. Alre is compatible with various systems and technologies, such as IoT, AI, and GPS. Personal data from phones, healthcare information from smartwatches, invoices, and payment details, can all be stored in the data bank.
Storage of data
Information stored on Alre is uploaded to the blockchain which preserves its integrity. The blockchain is immutable and verifiable. Anyone who receives access to the data can test if attempts have been made to alter or damage the data.
Utilization of data
Alre has developed its own APIs. These APIs allow clients to connect to particular data banks or offer their own data bank services to the userbase. Permanent records are kept, that document who has accessed which data sources, and which clients have been awarded Alre tokens.
Business Model
The platform awards and incentivizes all users to be part of the project.
Users who upload their personal information are rewarded based on the quality, quantity, and type of data they share. Every time their data is used, they receive an appropriate number of tokens. This motivates them to share more and better quality of data. The tokens can be used for services on the Alre network or sold on cryptocurrency exchanges.
Data corporations can purchase personal information from the data banks. This data can be used for research, marketing purposes, or shared with other clients with the owner’s consent. Alre services will be cheaper than the traditional data aggregators of today. The information is obtained legally because users have endorsed the sharing of data. The information they receive is specifically targeted to suit their needs and it provides valid insights.
Alre will earn service fees by corporations and other clients who purchase the stored data. It is in everyone’s interest to obtain high-quality data. The uploaders will receive bigger and more regular rewards, and data corporations will pay higher service fees for a better quality of data.
Data Tampering Prevention with Alre
Alre guarantees the correct storage and accuracy of all data in its data banks. This guarantee includes that the data has not been edited, tampered with, or accessed without the authorization of its original owner.
The Problem
In today’s Internet, our personal information is being stored and controlled by big data organizations like Google or Facebook. We have witnessed various affairs and hacking incidents where private user information has been illegally sold or shared publicly.
The clients purchasing the data have no way to verify and cannot trust the records they have received. The data could have been falsified or changed in other ways.
The Solution
Alre stores all data on a distributed blockchain ledger. Nodes inspect and sign the transactions. Node operators have to be in consensus, and the majority of nodes have to allow the storage of data. This is also a security system that can prevent the unlawful accessing of user information. The Alre blockchain leaves permanent digital traces that make it impossible to edit, delete, or misuse stored data.
Alre and the ARCS Token
The proprietary token of the Alre network is called ARCS token. It is an Ethereum-based ERC-20 token that can be stored in any standard wallet supporting the ERC-20 token standard.
The ARCS token serves two main purposes:
Reward system for Alre customers – Internet users are less inclined towards sharing their personal information online after many scandals involving private data were made public. Alre’s reward system is an added incentive to become part of the ecosystem and securely store personal data.
Payment method on the Alre network – Participants of the Alre ecosystem receive financial stimulus from using ARCS tokens and not traditional currencies. The ARCS token is the native currency that is used to purchase data and other services on Alre.
How to Purchase Data on the Alre Network?
In this example, the readers will find out how a standard Alre transaction looks like.
Customers sign up to Alre and store their personal data in the Alre data banks. They are awarded ARCS tokens for their role.
Data companies who wish to purchase the stored information need to acquire ARCS tokens from a cryptocurrency exchange that will be used as a means of payment.
When they have their tokens, they can purchase data from a data bank of their choice. Users whose data is being bought will be rewarded with additional ARCS tokens for their valuable inputs. Alre collects a commission fee for expediting the service.
The data companies are now owners of the purchased information. They can use the data to offer their own services or sell it to other clients for ARCS tokens.
Future Plans
Apart from current services that Alre offers, the team is working on implementing new features and offers for their clients.
Conducting business online bears certain risks. Trust factors. There needs to be a system that can verify who an individual is and what he claims to be. What data does he have, and what source does it originate from?
Decentralized Digital Identity (DID) – is a new type of digital verification system that can identify a person or an organization that the owner of the DID wants the other party to identify. They are cryptographic proof that shows that the owner of the DID controls and owns what they claim they do. DIDs can provide verifiable proof, such as banking information, identity data, or employment status. These identities will be possible to manage and store in digital crypto wallets on the blockchain. The owners of the DIDs will be able to use this digital proof to request credentials from blockchain-based service providers. The owners of the data are 100% in control of their DIDs. They can select the type of data they want to share and whom to share it with.
Cooperation with the banking sector – Several banks use APIs nowadays, giving other third parties access to their services catalog. APIs are computer software that developers use to build on top of the existing technology that the API providers make public. Bank APIs make it possible to build apps on top of the banking infrastructure. This can be used to check account balances for example. Alre will make it possible to connect the financial data provided by banks to the personal data stored in Alre data banks. This merging of data will result in better and more accurate services.
A new Credit criterion – Banking institutions calculate credit scores based on a client’s income, employment, and nationality. A person with a low credit score will not be granted a high credit. A bad credit rating is hard and almost impossible to correct.
Alre estimates that the information stored in their data banks can be used to create a better credit standard, and incorporate those users who have not been able to use traditional banking services before.
It opens up a whole new standard for investment opportunities. P2P investing and financing would become available to the general public thanks to the ARCS token. Blockchain technology doesn’t suffer from geographical restrictions like conventional investing. The public nature of the technology will make the investment conditions transparent through the use of smart contract functionalities.
Final Words
Alre has recognized the importance of protecting the personal data of its users. They have created an ecosystem where the users are in the center of it all, controlling what is being stored and shared between clients.
A safe storage model is of the utmost importance. That is why Alre has chosen the immutable and impenetrable blockchain technology. Storing data on the blockchain builds the client’s trust in Alre. The mission of Alre is to protect identifiable personal data and put its users in control of what happens to it. In an ever-changing digital world, the companies who show an ability to protect the clients will earn the respect and trust they deserve. Trust creates opportunities, and opportunities create business growth.
Written by bernardos
Important Links
Website: https://www.arcs-chain.com/
Whitepaper: https://www.arcs-chain.com/whitepaper_en.pdf?v=20191122b
Twitter: https://twitter.com/ARCS_ARX
Medium: https://medium.com/arcs-arx-official
Telegram: https://t.me/ARCS_ARX_EN
Source:
https://www.arcs-chain.com/whitepaper_en.pdf?v=20191122b