HAVE YOU BEING IN A TRANSACTION where you asked, “what’s in your wallet?” 

As our digital footprint and lifestyle grows, I see personal information becoming a form of digital currency – the personal information is something that an individual person owns, controls and uses in exchange for “personalized” goods and services.

An estimated 18 Million Nigerian adults have a smartphone; by mid-2015, there were 1,158, 355, 663 with Ivinternet users climbing to 330,965, 359 by November,  and about 65 percent of those users participate in social media, according to NCC.

Across the globe today, some organisations sell or share the digital data that is captured online or left behind by these users. I see a future where the model is flipped – where instead of companies trading these digital data, consumers are in control of their own data and approve its release and use for personal benefits or for social good.

Take some time to think about your online activities & accounts where your information is being collected; You will be amazed at the length of the list: email; social media; web history; services such as television cable, electric power, cell phones; online banking; credit cards; apps such as game sites and coupons; even location data from your cell phone and GPS device, the list go on and on. 

Today, much of this digital information is not under your control. For example, you had to provide your information with an email provider to create an email account. Sad enough we are oblivious to the terms and conditions before use so it’s hard to know how that service provider will, in turn, use your information. Once you trade the compulsory data information, they are out of your hands.

At Altecho (ATEL), we see consumers having a better understanding of how information is collected, who accesses it and what it’s used for. I also think they will have a lot more say in how it is used.

Let’s say you want to work with your physician on a family healthcare plan. In addition to your family’s healthcare card and records, technology will make it possible for you to share lifestyle information such as what items was bought while grocery shopping during the past month; your exercise routine; what places you visited and what websites we surfed. All of this information will help the doctor make more precise recommendations about your family’s health and wellness. And sometimes we willingly opt to share the data with NGO’s looking for credible statistics to help control analytical works.

Altecho (ATEL) envisions a “digital personal wallet” that tracks and controls my data, recommending what, when, and how it can be used to benefit me, my friends and family, or society. For example, let’s say you want to book a family vacation to an exotic place, and need help making arrangements. Your digital assistant may suggest for you trade three months’ worth of your Facebook data for the travel booking services. It can also tell the travel agent your preferences, so the trip is customized.

We see three [3] key areas advancing rapidly in order for this approach to become possible- user privacy, data security and consumer education– these are called technological and physiological factors.

https://www.statista.com/statistics/467187/forecast-of-smartphone-users-in-nigeria/