Cathay Pacific has recently announced that a hacker accessed 9.4 million customers’ personal information. This is the largest data breach ever to occur in the airline industry.
While the majority of people affected had their names, phone numbers and email addresses collected, Cathay Pacific CEO Rupert Hogg indicated there was also some breach into travel, Asia Miles and Marco Polo Club loyalty programs.
“No one’s travel, Asia Miles or Marco Polo Club loyalty program profiles were accessed in full, and no passwords were compromised, he said.” This is a very glass-half-full way of looking at it.
Data breaches, such as this, make news headlines because the information hackers acquire is valuable. These 9.4 million people could now have their names, email addresses and phone numbers sold to the highest bidder, or multiple bidders, spammers perhaps.
People tend not to mind sharing their personal information with organizations like Cathay Pacific and Facebook. Such companies are large, trusted organizations, and it is often said, “I don’t mind that they have my data. They show me things I like. They make a better experience for me.” Though, what most people aren’t aware of is the information they allow companies like Cathay Pacific and Facebook to collect when agreeing to terms and conditions, data and privacy policies. When a hacker gains access to this data — in the case of Cathay Pacific — hacked files, such as travel programs, can provide insight into a person’s interests and habits.
An influx of spam messages, which surprisingly are geared towards personal interest, is reason for people to start minding what information they share with whom.
Blockchain provides peace of mind and reinstates trust
In the last year, trust in organizations like Cathay Pacific and Facebook has been shaken, to say it lightly. Both organizations have suffered hits to their stock prices in 2018.
With trust in companies using centralized storage systems going out the window, there are a number of businesses adopting blockchain technology to better secure their consumers’ information through decentralized data storage. The power of blockchain’s security is peace of mind from the worry that a hacker will gain access to an organization’s data.
NOIZchain is one such company that uses a decentralized blockchain to protect some of the most valuable data that people generate: advertising data.
Blockchain gives control of data back to users
Centralized organizations like Google and Facebook profit from their ability to track users across multiple sites, platforms and devices, on and offline. They use this information to help advertisers more efficiently reach their target audiences. This is important for the advertising industry; however, consumers don’t get a voice in the process. It is Google and Facebook that decide which organizations can market to which individuals, based off the information individuals allow Google and Facebook to collect.
Through the concept of digital assets on a blockchain, information like name, email address, location, phone number, clicks and web pages visited are locked with a key and only those with the key can access the information. This is the power that blockchain brings to consumers. They can now decide directly within the NOIZchain platform what personal information to share with which organizations.
Consumers can also set requirements that organizations must meet in order to gain access to the personal information. A specific number of NOIZ tokens, the organizations name, and the purpose of use are just a few examples of the requirements a consumer can set in place.
More control over data and the knowledge that data is secure are two of the core features NOIZchain offers.
Learn more about NOIZchain by visiting https://noizchain.com, and chat with the NOIZchain team via the Telegram channel.
If you are a member of Cathay Pacific, Marco Polo or Asia Miles. Check your inbox for an email with the subject line: “Important information about your personal data.” It states which personal data of yours has been exposed.
