Your Data, Their Profit: Should We Own Our Data?
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When we wake up in the morning and open our eyes to our phones, and when we scroll through Instagram at night, we are consistently making data. As we are using our devices, every click, swipe, like, and share that we do is one additional piece of data created. There are moments when we don’t even have to click or tap our devices; as long as the device is within the same room is enough for it to send our data to these organizations who are constantly finding new ways to spy on us and get our data, whether that data is relatively harmless or not meaningful at the surface level, it does have both personal and financial value.
It is no secret that many organizations, such as Google, Facebook, Amazon, and TikTok, thrive off our data; they can analyze our data and learn about us and predict us, and can even dictate how we behave as individuals based on personal data collected from inferences made with our data. But here is the million dollar question.
Who owns that data? Is it us, the actual individuals that create it? Or is it the platforms who collect and use that data? Let us understand.
What is Data Ownership?
Data ownership is the capability to control one’s own personal data, manage one’s location history, browsing history, online purchases and indeed, even the likes and interests they make.
For now, this data is collected by all the apps, websites, and services we interact with every day. And while they may ask for our permission (in those long privacy policy documents that we never read), we don’t actually “own” it owner and user in a legal sense. They do.
In a physical world, ownership is simpler to comprehend. You own your home. You own your bicycle. You own your clothes. If someone wants to use or sell something you’ve paid for, they have to ask for your permission. Online, it’s not as easy.
Why Does Data Actually Matter?
You may say, “I have nothing to hide, so what’s the big deal?” But data isn’t just about hiding stuff. Data is about control, value, and dignity.
So, why does data matter?
It’s Valuable: In 2023, the total value of the global data economy was over $325 billion. Organizations use your data to sell digital advertisements, teach AI, develop products, and even build political campaigns.
It Shapes Your Experience: Have you ever wondered why you see certain products online? Or how come Netflix keeps suggesting things you are actually interested in? It’s your data.
It Can Be Exploited: Remember the Cambridge Analytica scandal? The data from Facebook was used to influence elections. That’s the power that data has.
It’s Personal: Your health data, your financial data, your private messages – they can tell a lot more about you than you realize.
Do We Currently Own Our Data?
Technically, no because most countries don’t treat personal data like physical property. You can ask companies to delete or stop using your data under privacy laws (like GDPR in Europe or CCPA in California), but you don’t “own” it in the way you own your home.
Instead, when you use an app or a website, you often “agree” without complete knowledge to give away rights to your data in exchange for using the service. This is why people say, “If you’re not paying for the product, you are the product.” It is here that we lose these rights to own it completely and these loopholes make our data the actual property of the company that has it.
The Argument For Data Ownership
Many experts today want to treat data as property. Here’s why the idea makes sense:
Fairness and Consent: If it is your data, you should have power over whether it can be used or not, and maybe you should be compensated.
Monetization: An average internet user has, in 2024, an estimated 1.7 MB of data generated per second. That’s a lot of data. Why should tech companies be the only ones to profit?
Transparency: If we own our data companies have to be more transparent about what the data they use does.
Empowerment: The notion of ownership gives people more agency over its use, which implications for trust and the potential for trusted and innovative ethical behavior.
The Case Against Data As Property
Data is technically ‘property’ – but not everyone agrees. Let’s understand why.
It’s Not a Tangible Asset: Data is easily copied, distributed, or changed, therefore treating it as a “property” that you own may not be realistic
Complicated Ownership Chains: Your data is often intertwined with others’ data, such as in a group chat, all responsible for the data in that chat. Who owns that data?
Could Make Things Worse: Some argue that those with wealth may be able to get better privacy (because they can afford it) while less wealthy people might have no option but to sell their data to earn money.
More Effort than Worth: Expecting everyone to manage their data like a piece of property may be too much for the average person to deal with and will only create more confusion.
What are Governments Doing?
Governments are starting to wake up to these issues – here is what’s happening in the world:
Europe (GDPR): Grants people the right to access, delete, or amend their data. It does not state you are “owners” of the data.
India (DPDP Act 2023): A user-centric approach to data privacy with emphasis on consent, protection of personal data, however it still gives power to the Government and large platforms.
USA: No federal data legislation thus far, but some states (e.g., California) have more stringent now.
China: Personal Information Protection Law (PIPL) is tough, but again ownership isn’t really the key idea – it is more about control and restrictions.
So, although there is some protection in place, none give you total legal rights to your data, the same as you own your land or your money.
What Would Data Ownership Look Like?
It may look like you having a data wallet, just like a bank account. Anytime a company wants to use your data they have to ask you for permission, and probably pay you a small fee.
You could
– have the ability to pick which apps get to access what portion of your data
– be rewarded or paid from various companies if they use your data for research, or ads.
– see where your data is going and what it is being used for.
That sounds great, right?? But creating something like this at scale would be very challenging. This would require new laws, new technology, and a change in thinking about privacy.
Real-World Experiments
Some startups are already trying out this type of model.
– DIMO pays drivers to share car data.
– Ocean Protocol allows people to sell health data for research.
– Brave Browser offers you crypto rewards if you let ads access your attention data.
These are small steps, showing that if you start thinking about data as something that you control and can benefit from, it is possible.
Fina Reflections: Should we own our data?
On one hand? Treating data as property may give us power, hold companies accountable, and could potentially allow us to make revenue off our data. On the other hand, it could contribute to added layers of issues, ambiguity, inequity, or surveillance – it really depends. We just want a hybrid, where you don’t “own” the data in the same manner as your land, but you have significant agency over it. This should include:
The collection of data should have explicit consent prior. Companies should ALWAYS offer the owner if it’s data complete right to delete &/or transfer their data. There should also be transparency in how its utilized, and companies should not collect data that is not consented to such as images, footages, gallery data, gadget spying etc without consent from the owner, there should also be a way to benefit monetarily if the data is helping companies grow. As we enter the world of AI, smart devices, and digital identity, this inquiry will only get bigger. Our data is part of our digital self. We may not have a touch, but it speaks louder than we think.
And maybe, just maybe, now is the time to stop giving it away for free.
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