One of most popular networks worldwide, Facebook, may begin using blockchain technology in its work.
Facebook CEO Mark Zuckerberg said he is ‘potentially interested’ in this technology during a public interview with Harvard Law professor Jonathan Zittrain, The Verge reported. Zuckerberg said blockchain could be used for authentication. He also noted that the use of blockchain technology could give Facebook users unique opportunities while granting data access to third-party applications.
“Yet, I haven’t found a way for this to work”, Facebook founder said.
This could actually mean the replacement of the Facebook Connect service, which allows using Facebook login and password to login to other websites) to a certain decentralized solution. Obviously, using blockchain for storing users’ personal data will reduce the risk of personal information leakage and protect Facebook from accusations of passing information to third parties, which will improve the social network’s image.
Blockchain technology could also give Facebook users new opportunities to make money. According to Igor Pavlov, head of the Waves Node development team, when logging into a social networking site users now have to allow access to their personal data, which is used by social networks for targeted advertising. Blockchain technology will allow each user to strictly restrict the access to personal information.
“Users will receive the opportunity to manage their data. For instance, they can allow a certain organization to learn that they have already reached the age of 21 without granting the access to their exact birth date, and allow some other organization to have access to their full list of personal interests”, Pavlov explained.
This way of managing personal data will shift advertising revenues of social networks, with users receiving money for providing personal information directly from an advertiser.