Bitcoin Masterclass Begins: Session One Explains Why Data Privacy Matters

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Privacy, confidentiality and anonymity, how do these concepts differ and why are they so important? The world is grappling with dilemmas around these as more and more of our lives are affected by data collection and storage. Although most people don’t know it, bitcoin and blockchain transactions actually solve these problems. This is the subject of the creator of BitcoinDr. Craig S. Wright’s first “Bitcoin Masterclass”, a two-day event broadcast from London on January 25-26.

There are eight sessions in total in the Bitcoin Masterclass. The live streams are available here, and the recording will remain on CoinGeek’s YouTube channel for later viewing. All are recommended for people who want to learn more about what Bitcoin can actually do.

Data, but done right

At the heart of Dr. Wright’s first presentation is how data must be managed properly now and in the future, as electronically stored information becomes more universal. Existing methods may be insecure, too revealing, or spread across multiple systems.

Imagine if there was a way to keep all records, no matter how personal or confidential, so that they could be gathered and useful, but only to the parties concerned to prove that the information exists without revealing it. or disclose other details which do not need to be known, or to keep partial records and details private, even from those who may have all of your other information on file.

“It’s about having the information you need when you need it. Another aspect is by whom,” says Dr. Wright.

Much time has been wasted in the development of Bitcoin over the years on ways to make transactions anonymous. This is because people often confuse anonymity with privacy and confidentiality. In reality, complete anonymity is neither desirable nor feasible. For honest transactions, there should be ways to verify who you are transacting with and even keep records if necessary.

“If you don’t use identity, you don’t sign,” he adds, noting that identity recorded in accounting has existed in law since Roman times, perhaps even before that.

This doesn’t mean that pseudonyms can’t be used or that someone has to reveal all of their personal information every time they make a transaction. Even in existing systems, we disclose far too much of our personal data, even for the smallest purchase (credit/debit cards are a good example). Companies and even governments store far more information about us than they need and have poor security records.

Dr. Wright mentions the “CIA” principle of information security: information must be confidential, intact and available.

Bitcoin provides the means to achieve these principles. The parties can share keys proving the identity of the operators, or any other information relevant to their business, without making this information public or accessible to anyone who does not need it.

Automate these processes with wallet software

Dr. Wright called on wallet developers to embed processes into their apps to simplify this.

“Let’s start thinking about our KPI process,” he says.

Root keys and categorization data can be shared using ECDH (Elliptic Curve Diffie-Hellman) secrets, which could split transactions into smaller parts and allow different keys for each transaction. The software can quickly determine if a key is valid and if it belongs to a certain party, even if a key has not even been created yet, and even if a party is offline.

An individual or business can keep complete records of all their transactions and stored personal data and bring this information together when needed (for example, at tax time). Governments and businesses could keep records about stakeholders and customers while only seeing the parts of those records that are relevant for a specific purpose. Another example is the change of residential address. Currently, there are an ever-increasing number of different services that you need to notify. Bitcoin and a stored digital ID would allow you to update a single record and distribute it to needed services.

There’s a lot of concern about future digital identity proposals, and much of that concern is valid. Many organizations have been guilty of over-collection, over-sharing, and poor security practices. Likewise, many still prefer cash because of the (supposed) extra layer of privacy it offers.

Bitcoin solves data storage, privacy, and security issues with the way it manages access to that data. It may even be more private than cash (as Dr. Wright points out, even physical money is traceable via individual serial numbers on banknotes).

The important point to remember is that we don’t have to fear the world of Big Data and anything digital as long as the data can be processed properly. Bitcoin handles data correctly. To find out all the hows and whys, watch Dr. Wright’s Bitcoin Masterclass series and be sure to incorporate his concepts into real-life conversations.

Log in for Bitcoin Masterclass Day Two here.

Watch: Blockchain for government data and apps

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New to Bitcoin? Check out CoinGeek’s Bitcoin for Beginners section, the ultimate resource guide to learn more about the Bitcoinas originally envisioned by Satoshi Nakamoto and blockchain.

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