Facebook news is taking on new meaning. No, we are not referring to the algorithm on their news feed. Instead, it is the headlines that Facebook is making by being breached potentially putting the data of billions at risk.
In the last couple days, Facebook lost $60B in value. Mark Zuckerberg and Sheryl Sandberg went missing in action when called to Washington. The British government is starting to look into the matters and will be conducting hearings.
This will make headlines for months which will help to drive home how unsafe people's data really is.
As a social media site, this helps STEEM enormously. Both Facebook and YouTube are engaging in a censorship/banning campaign. This is causing great dismay among people about the freedom of speech. Both entities are being accused of engaging in tactics that program people what to think. Instead of passing on the news, they are creating it.
It is now emerging that 880K payment cards were accessed in a hack of Orbitz, the online travel agency. Techcrunch wrote that the breach gave hackers access to credit data and other personal information of users who utilized the service over a two year period starting in 2016.
The hackers also likely accessed other data, like names, physical or mailing addresses, birth dates, email addresses, phone numbers and the customer’s gender while they were in the systems between October and December 2017. It’s unclear whether the hackers also downloaded this data. In a statement, though, Orbitz told us that it has found no “direct evidence that this personal information was actually taken from the platform.”
https://techcrunch.com/2018/03/20/hackers-gain-access-to-880k-credit-cards-from-orbitz-customers/
Of course the company said that. They are going to deny as much as they can. The typical story in these instances is that a company owns up to being hacked (because it can't deny it) then claims that nothing important was taken. Here we have the Expedia owned company basically claiming that no personal data was downloaded.
How long before people realize that centralized databases simply are not safe? Last year, one of the biggest hacks took place when Equifax was accessed. There again, we saw the company claim minimal damage. Of course, the government did nothing when it could have fined Equifax billions.
People are just starting to realize how much their data is worth to these companies. They are profiting to the tunes of billions yet are leaving it vulnerable. Sadly, nothing these entities do is going to keep the data safe since the hackers are always a step ahead of the data security companies.
So what is the answer?
We are starting to see the advantages of blockchain. Even members of the U.S. Congress, in their report last week, mentioned the security of blockchain. This is something that I feel is a major selling point. STEEM is one of the most advanced blockchains putting it in great position to leverage the distrust and outrage at Facebook.
Things are starting to align perfectly for blockchain. This year we are seeing a tremendous amount of development on the blockchain that is starting to propel into the realm of providing real world solutions. Once again, we see STEEM at the forefront of this since there are 60K+ daily active users on here.
Nevertheless, all the marketing in the world will not make a bit of different if people are not open to receiving the message. The fact that there is so much publicity around data breaches is starting to awaken people to the fact these major entities are not safe. With so much data being exposed, it is not long before the Western Governments (at a minimum) start to really probe this situation. Not even the mainstream media can hide this one.
It is time people stop supporting these companies that are putting people at risk. While it is not easy to remove oneself from every institution, there are places to begin the process. Obviously, social media now provides alternatives to the centralized, manipulative institutions of Facebook and YouTube. Now that Twitter joined in the fun with a ban on cryptocurrency advertising, we can add them to the list.
Advertisers pay dearly for each user on a network. Removing oneself from these ecosystems will hit them in the pocket.
It is time for STEEM to kick things up a notch. The present news cycle can only help position STEEM as an alternative to the corruption if we portray it that way.
And the reason we offer this solution: decentralization.
It is at the core of what this blockchain is.
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Boom! Security and privacy are going to be more and more in demand as this these types of activities continue to occur. I think FB has serious problems and will struggle from here moving forward. The glory days of FB have passed. Thanks for the post!
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They'll never realize this. For an average Joe, hacking is something flashy but vogue. They believe $ in a bank are protected - bank have a security team! But BTC have none, and it's opened, and trustless, and permissionless, and totally digital. It's so fragile, how can NOT it been hacked?
There is a Russian proverb: "The trees obscure a forest from you". Simple folks will see many trees (centralized service hacks) but never will see the forest (centralized = vulnerable) cos they just can't tell a difference, ergo for them "if it's digital = it's hackable, so centralize it and protect with a fierwalls, security teams, restrictive policies and law enforcement".
Being a brilliant person yourself, you a discarding common ignorance in you theories. And that's is a big mistake. Masses do the future. And masses are ignorant. Above all we must enlight masses.
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The masses never lead they follow. It does not take the masses, or even a majority, for radical changes to take place. That is proven throughout history.
Leadership is what is needed. Up to this point, it was the elites who led the masses around by the nose. The term "sheeple" is used for a valid reason.
I agree with enlightening the masses yet realize, as you stated, it will not take with most of them. Fortunately, it does not have to. The existing structures' missteps will aid our in journey. We just need to develop a solid core of people who do grasp what is going on.
There are enough people who are pissed off at something who are already leading the charge. Whether it is the anarchists, the homesteaders, the anti-pharma, anti-flouride, anti-vaccination, organic food, Wall Street hating, oil protesting, climate change, and now, anti big tech people, they are all starting to change the view people have of things. It might be slow for most of the masses, but it is happening.
I believe it is our place to try and tie it all together for them. Most dont see the big picture...it is up to us to pave the way...for us to pull the sheeple by the nose to where they need to go.
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Maybe you right. I hope so.
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Anything you post on any platform is being mined and used. I have no use for Facebook, but there is no way to avid data mining, even with blockchain.
https://steemit.com/privacy.html
Steemit, Inc Privacy Policy
Effective April 1, 2016
1We want you to understand how and why Steemit, Inc (“Steemit,” “we” or “us”) collects, uses, and shares information about you when you access and use Steemit’s websites, mobile apps, widgets, and other online products and services (collectively, the "Services") or when you otherwise interact with us.
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Yes Steemit does...but not all applications and interfaces will be under US jurisdiction.
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Like someone above commented. It all has to do with how much we give "them."
Unfortunately for most of us, we aren't experienced enough to not give them enough.
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I could not agree more. With Facebook on the ropes we here using Steemit need to get the word out and help encourage our friends and family to join in the fun. It is really an easy sell.
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And yet I continue to utilize the convenience of Amazon Prime where my debit card info is on their centralized database.
Yeah, that’s going to bite me in the ass some day.
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You probably don't worry that much because they sell you FUD, and then they sell you peace of mind (all it costs is a piece of your mind too). You probably believe that if some fraudulent charges come up, Amazon, your bank, your credit card company or SOMEBODY is going to re-inburse you and make it all better.
The probably will fix their "mistake" too.
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Don't have any issue seeing Facebook lose marketcap or revenue. They've been so careless and calous about how they use people's personal information ever since they started... it's just surprising it took this long. No surprising that leadership would dodge a call to appear in Washington. They know they could get grilled and look like idiots. Better to be in contempt and hope that nothing else bad happens. Maybe things will get sorted out while they're missing and then the consequences won't be as bad when they get back. Snakes... on planes and in our computers.
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HAHAHAHA by now they probably can't be jailed anyway, as they probably somehow own the prisons (or know the people who do).
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With the number of private jails, if you're rich enough, you can probably reserve a plush cell so if you're ever incarcerated, you can go there and live in luxury until release.
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The big social media platforms are getting more manipulative every day. They see the danger to their business models and all they can think about is more control. Just like the whole bunch of shadow players in all areas of society. the outcome is clear: People are flocking to alternative systems and alternative mindsets.
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Yes! Nobody with a right mind would want all their data in the hands of one powerful individual or company.
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The funny thing about that is that Steem is 100% transparent and technically everybody can access that data. But the difference is that we know that (hopefully) from the start an deal with our shared info in a different way. I am happy that Steem is transparent as it is.
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We aren't in our right minds anymore. We are fighting to stay awake and in our right minds. Its a daily battle.
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I have never been a youtwitface. (no facebook, no twitter, no youtube) and I am so glad that I didn't jump on that bandwagon. I guess there is something to be said for being an old fart.
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Congratulations on staying off the grid.
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Thanks. I am enjoying my peace and tranquillity. No drama here.
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I do question if such things are also possible on Steemit. All content is freely available on the blockchain but I don't know how and if this content can be related to the accounts.
Besides this, their is enough data accessible on the blockchain which can be used as big data. Topics discussed, tags used and so on.
And yes, we are all bashing on Facebook but would there be a steemit without facebook? The idea behind it was great and the business plan even smarter. To be honest, I do feel that we should not blame Zuckerburg getting rich with it, we more should blame the users for giving their data away for free.
But you know we are on the same page considering Steemit and its future. I just wanted to offer you a different viewpoint.
The blockchain technology will not be the solution for a lot of problems and scandals we are facing today!
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Facial recognition software ensnares us all. 😉
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It will probably also score us on a good loocking scale! I wonder if they than also would introduce scores below 0 😂😂
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That would never happen would it? 😁
Talk about far out Star Trek type stuff....
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But they already can. It has to do with the Golden Ratio. The symmetry of the face can be measured, the closer the result come to 1.62, the more attractive that it will be.
Apparently the face of Angelina Jolie come pretty close to this!
The most famous example is the Mona Lisa!
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A chip in our head that monitors what we are thinking is even better.
That way they can track us when we think if Steemit...we dont even need to visit the site for them to have that info.
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@taskmaster4450, you raised many issues in this beautiful piece.
Facebook and YouTube banning crypto ads could be argued to be a proactive measure to protect their users, especially since a number of cryptos are fraudulent.
But such blanket ban can also be argued to be discriminatory. It is a serious anti-trust issue and an attempt by oligopolies to keep the market to themselves.
There is work to be done. Tested platforms such as Steemit have an advantage here. Get the message out. Let the public hear your message and see how you stand out.
Finally, I like this quote from the above article. This is a solid selling point:
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I remember hearing the Orbitz and Expedia issues. They have a ton of callcenters here in the Philippines and one of the first places they looked at the breach was here.
I remember assisting one of the onsite managers in investigating that as HR together with IT of the company and found that the breach did not happen there. Sigh of relief to a lot of people who were afraid that they were going to lose their jobs.
This an opportune time indeed but what is Steem Inc doing?
They don't have a good marketing strategy or even a department because it is virtually none existent.
I hope they capitalize on this and bring us to that 1 Million user and then hope that things pick really fast.
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I have followed your posts for few days and read the preachings for STEEM as a solution to all the problems with Facebook. It would be more interesting to read if you had a more balanced view on things, like how STEEM is using similar incentives to grow the user base.
I cant see how a STEEM blockchain based platform will stop people from harvesting other peoples data to gain more power over others. As i have written before, Steemit and the other front ends are collecting and sharing same kind of data about its users as all the other big players.
What would be different if one day all FB users migrated to STEEM blockchain? Once you have more users, you will have more people trying to sell you stuff you don't need to live a healthy life.
I fear it could be worse than what we have today, if each action you make on this platform is prices in $.
Every STEEM user would become, a little bit of: CEO, user, content creator, promoter, advertiser, consumer, bank, analyst, developer .....
How will people find time to reflect what really makes them happy and worth living for?
We have been feeding the Facebook monster for years, whats the difference feeding a new?
Just a thought
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The difference is the front ends are just interfaces...it isnt where the real value lies. Notice I say STEEM is the solution, not Steemit. Steemit is a poor competitor to Facebook (Reddit perhaps but not Facebook) because of the lack of features. That could change but it seems they are determined to go after Reddit.
Under your scenario, if all of Facebook migrated over here, I surmise you would have hundreds, if not thousands, of interfaces pop up. This means people will have choices which one they use. Today, we are basically stuck with 3....that wil change over time.
Plus with blockchain, one of the next generation moves will be the establishment of digital IDs for people. The governments will hate it but people will not be tied to their data like they are today. Down the road we will all have a digital ID that is used to surf these blockchains, meaning we control it. There will be a key which will allow us to sell it for medical research as an example.
And yes people will be, essentially, their own CEOs, so I agree with you on this point. However, it will not only be STEEM but most any activity that they will be paid for. Web browsing, exercise, eating the right food, watching movies...everything will be incentivized (most of that is already just we dont get paid for it). So yes people will have money coming in from many different areas.
And that is when people will be able to move up Maslow hierarchy and focus on some of the other more important things. Under the scarcity model, most of us are relegated to concentrating a large portion of our lives just to getting enough to sustain ourselves. World wide, most people are failing at that. Even in the Western cultures, we see this trend starting to take hold although it is partially hidden by the massive debt that people are given.
The advantage to this people cannot develop another Facebook using all of Facebook's information. People would lose all their friends, posts, and whatever else they did on there. On STEEM, if you develop an interface that I use, I still have all my friends, posts, and comments. All that is still accessible. Even using something like steemd.com enables me to access the information although it is very basic in design.
Ultimately, with enough development of things put on this blockchain, STEEM will be its own ecosystem where people work, interact, shop, and do other things. We are moving towards a digital world. Do not be surprised to see many of the online activities we engage upon now all on this blockchain. We are already seeing it with social media. There are also auctions similar to ebay, a decentralized exchange for trading (granted only 3 currencies traded at the moment), and Visa cards paid for in STEEM. Granted, these are all in the early stages but it does show the possibilities of what can develop on here.
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Thanks for this detailed reply on how you see the future of the STEEM based platform evolving.
I just cant see much of a difference compared to the old model but with a slower public decentralized database that anyone with enough knowledge will exploit to suppress others.
Just the fact that there is a US corporation behind this project which is governed by US law does not give me much confidence in a sustainable future.
from the Privacy Policy page:
https://steemit.com/privacy.html
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There is a US Corporation behind Steemit...STEEM is not incorporated.
Where is D.Tube out of? Where is Zappl? Where is Appics? Where is Dsound? Where is Busy?
Simply because one interface is out of the US, that doesnt mean it will remain. In fact, bitshares.org just moved their operations out of the US to Thailand since the laws there are less restrictive for what they are trying to do.
I am sorry that you feel that. It really sucks to not have hope for a sustainable future.
Fortunately, there are millions of people who do not agree with your assessment.
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Sure but no matter which interface you use any content on the STEEM blockchain is accessible through Steemit and in effect has to follow the US laws, data mining and surveilance.
I don't know about bitshares.org and their issues, but having to move to Thailand does not makes any of my arguments less important to consider.
Which statement do you mean people do not agree with?
Just because million people use STEEM does not mean its any better than the current broken business model that Facebook uses.
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What is posted on the STEEM blockchain through other interfaces is accessible through Steemit but. But if it is on the blockchain, it is accessible to anyone who wants to look...that is the point of blockchain, it is open.
However they do not have the same surveillance as Facebook in terms of where you go, the ability to follow your moves around,
Many have confidence STEEM has a sustained future.
If you think this is such a broken business model like Facebook, why are you honestly here?
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Who are they? Every move on STEEEM based platforms use same tracking.
Following your posts you are the one suggesting Facebook's model is broken, i'm just commenting that STEEM blockchian is no different. Same incentives, same surveillance, if not worse.
Im here to learn, why are you here?
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This pretty much answers my comment as well.
Different ways to use steam, not just Steemit.
I saw an article yesterday that asked us to stop holding and start building. Never have I wanted to learn programming more. Its this want that gives me the confidence to keep reading those books I don't quite understand.
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Yeah, people need to open their eyes! Why should anyone share their data to anyone for free? I like that Facebook is getting exposed with all the hacks, because it's crazy that they were getting away with all of this data selling for so many years.
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I read that a lot of young people left social media altogether. They will come back and then hopefully to the Steemit.
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Nicknamed the FANG stocks there is a lot of money in those companies. Not sure how this all turns out but if the biggest wealth transfer happens through crypto it would be a dream come true :) Thanks.
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I started to disengage from those social networks:
First step: I closed my Facebook account
Second step: I stop using Chrome and switch to Opera
You can switch by baby steps ;)
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But they already have your info, it can't be undone ((
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At least I do not encourage them anymore!
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Those are great suggestions. If you write ab article about "baby steps we can take to disengage from mainstream media providers" I would LOVE to read it.
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I would put this idea on my list of possible articles, thank for the suggestion.
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Investors are reacting to fears of regulation and the consequences of regulation.The scale of errors can only lead one to conclude these are systemic problems.The possibility that Facebook has either not been transparent with consumers or has not been able to verify that third-party app developers are transparent with consumers is troubling and in all this mayhem, blockchain can find its way to top,
Time for Steemit and other blockchain to make gains
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Its FUD time for facebook investors.
I remember when California had to re-do its budget because of facebook. HAHAHAHAH. Silly government.
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Facebook is obsolete. Lately, I've been using FB just to ask my friends to join me at SteemIt... but they're not convinced. Yet. :-P
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wow so nice post i like this very much up vote thanks.
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I am almost completely done with other social media and days away from being a complete convert to the Steem blockchain.
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Надеюсь, люди, рано или поздно поймут, что есть вариант (STEEM), который позволяет за те же действия, что на Fasebook получать деньги. Удачи и любви Вам.
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I truly believe that nobody is surprised to hear about this data issue from Facebook. This is a reinforcement of the need to move away from centralized companies owning our data without fulling disclosing the way they use it to their benefit. It also demonstrates the need for the data privacy regulations worldwide. There are also a lot of blockchain projects that may solve the issue in interesting ways that will permit us to really own our data. Decentralized solutions will probably be the best options in the long term as we will have the best ability to manage our data and where it goes and for what reasons.
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Let them die by themselves. It's only a question of time before people see other options are available. But I still don't see Steemit as a Facebook competitor. Maybe an SMT or Branch will bring a more family oriented platform though.
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Any news on Pinterest?
I don't think Steemit is ready to take on the likes of Facebook.
As a steemit user, I enjoy pictures with simple captions, and sometimes, I even upvote them. I also read lots of articles. And lots of those articles are mean and critical and talk about how bloggers who just post random pictures don't "deserve" rewards, to the extent where they call it "rewards rape."
We are ready for more users who are knowledgeable and of the platform, ready to build communities, and willing to work or invest their time into becoming, dolphins and minnows. THEN we can start inviting the likes of facebook users who want to post pictures of their cute kids or meals or whatever. There will be enough of us to make it friendly.
I don't actively invite facebook users to Steemit. Only writers.
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Fascinating article. Depth of thought is what I appreciate. I will resteem. Thanks, keep it rolling.
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As the uses of internet and IT grow very high, security will totally be something everyone will be educated about. Once they realize their stuff is super safe here, they will love it.
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I never doubted that STEEM will be big, since the day I got into crypto studying it, we immediately find BTC and some cheap hot coins, but projects well fundamented like STEEM are proposing to change the world in a way that the mere mortals can´t even think about it.
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Decentralization=FREEDOM!!!!
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Centralized organization is bad... really bad. For hackers it's an easy target... get access to only one server or two or three is an easy task. Decentralized makes hacker to scratch head.
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