Your digital shadow is unique. Like a puzzle, every piece represents a part of you - your likes, dislikes, habits, and searches. As you engage online, these pieces are scattered across the digital landscape. They are then pieced together by the highest bidder and analyzed to come up with a picture of who they think you are. These pictures are what drive everything you see from content suggestions to search results.
Saying your digital shadow is valuable is an understatement. It’s more accurate to say your data is a coveted commodity. Giants like Google, Meta, and ByteDance attest to this. In 2022, Google alone cashed in on $168.44 billion in ad revenue. Meta wasn't too far behind at $112.68 billion, ByteDance (owner of TikTok) came in with $29.07 billion. They’ve mastered the art of capturing and monetizing pieces of our digital puzzles.
These numbers stem from a business model that exchanges data collection and advertising for free use of the platforms we love, like Instagram or TikTok. The data they silently collect allows these services to operate freely and feeds their enormous revenue. Just because we enjoy these platforms doesn't mean we should blindly surrender control over our data. And it certainly doesn't mean we should not profit from its use. Afterall, most of these platforms are operating as middlemen, facilitating connections between us and brands or products that want our attention.
This isn't just about ads - it's about engineering your online experience. Arguably these platforms know us better than we know ourselves. They know what buttons to press to spark outrage, lust, envy and more. It’s not malicious, they’re just after our engagement. It doesn't matter the kind of engagement, they just need you to engage. The more you engage, the more profitable their services. Although it’s more than fair to say, we’re getting the shorter end of the stick.
How can we balance the scales between us and online platforms? It starts with taking control of our personal data. We could assemble our own digital puzzle and decide who gets our data and how they could use it? That’s the vision we’re realizing at Going Ghost.
We firmly believe our digital shadow should be ours to control. That’s why we’re creating an environment that empowers all of us to regain control of our personal data. Our app gives you centralized control of your personal data inside a ‘Data Passport’. Your ‘Data Passport’ can be used to connect with online vendors and platforms. For sharing your ‘Data Passport’ you are rewarded with money off your purchase. They get insight into their customers, you get money back in your pocket. And the best part, your data always remains in your control because of our decentralized hosting technology. You can choose to terminate the connection at any time. Start taking control of your data at www.goingghost.me.
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