Social media is everywhere. Yet there is a pervasive lack of trust in companies’ ability to look after our personal data.

Blockchain’s key value is trust, and its potential for social media is vast.

Could blockchain technology solve our trust problems?

The lack of trust

With recent compromises in data over the last couple of years, it’s clear to see why consumers are actively searching out more trustworthy platforms.

Consumers should have ownership over their own data, and distribute it as they desire. In theory, this is how it works. In reality, this is often not the case.

Even under seemingly secure systems, data can be hacked or manipulated.

In a 2018 report, only 49% of global consumers indicated that they trust social media platforms.

This is, in part, due to the fact that social media platforms have demonstrated an inability to adequately deal with breaches of trust. In addition, data from this platforms is a valuable commodity, and this often prevents social media companies from being transparent about where, exactly, the data is going.

The who, where and why of data transfer

To many consumers, data control is their primary priority.

So, if a person gives a company permission to use their information under certain circumstances, and the company is transparent about their use, this gap between honesty and distrust could be bridged.

There are several companies out there who are already implementing blockchain in social media. The goal is to ultimately decentralise the way we interact with each other, so that there is an immutable record of the truth. 

Sapien, for example, want to “champion users and truth, not financial gain, as the core of its social network.” Their website says that their social network “give users control of their data, reward content creators, and fight fake news.” While this isn’t to say that all information on a blockchain-backed social network would be correct, it does say that the original data had not been tampered with.

Current social media platforms don’t necessarily need to ber eplaced, either. However, they will need to start moving soon to prevent being overtaken by more secure, more transparent platforms.

This could potentially be the future of social networking: secure, decentralised and trustworthy.

At Blockhead Technologies, we’re securing data with blockchain-enabled technology. To find out more, click here.