Chinese authorities are willing to ensure maximum user privacy for the country’s central bank digital currency, or CBDC, according to an official at the People’s Bank of China. Mu Changchun, head of the People’s Bank of China’s digital currency research institute, spoke of China’s digital yuan privacy capabilities at the 2021 China Development Forum on Sunday, local news agency Sina Finance reported. Mu stated that a completely anonymous CBDC “is not feasible” because a national digital currency must meet requirements related to Anti-Money Laundering, Counter-Terrorist Financing and anti-tax evasion. However, that doesn’t mean that China’s digital yuan lacks user privacy, …

The internet has undoubtedly revolutionized the way we live. It has changed how we work, access information, travel, communicate and interact with each other. Along with it comes a greater level of freedom that we enjoy because of democratizing and decentralizing information. By doing so, the internet has opened up to a greater debate, analysis and scrutiny by the general public on matters that impact them and the world. Thanks to the internet, the sphere of influence is shifting away from centralized authorities and the mainstream media. In our rush to grasp the freedoms offered by the internet, we have …

Users of major privacy-oriented messaging app Signal can now support the project with cryptocurrencies like Bitcoin (BTC). Signal officially announced Monday that the platform has started accepting crypto donations as a form of support for the Signal Technology Foundation, the nonprofit organization behind the app. “As a nonprofit organization, we depend on your support. If you've been patiently waiting for Signal to accept cryptocurrency donations, you no longer need to hodl back your generosity,” Signal wrote. Cryptocurrency donations are now part of Signal’s “Donate” section on its official website, specifying that the new feature is enabled via major crypto donations …

Data collection, aggregation and analysis have become some of the largest profit generators for companies like Facebook and Google who have designed an array of algorithms purposed with harnessing user data in order to better optimize the user interfaces of their applications and their online marketplaces. While collecting the data is the ultimate objective, the events of the past few years have also shown that securing it and ensuring that the privacy of customers and users is protected is imperative. Combining data collection with the ability to securely store it on a distributed ledger seems like a natural fit, and …

Major privacy-focused browser Brave is inching closer to offering a private search engine. Brave announced Wednesday that the company has acquired Tailcat, an open search engine developed by a group formerly working on privacy search and browser products at Cliqz. Operating under the majority holding of Hubert Burda Media, Cliqz terminated its efforts on browser and search tech in May 2020. According to the announcement, Tailcat will serve as a foundation for the upcoming Brave Search — an inbuilt search engine designed to enable private and transparent web surfing. Brave CEO and co-founder Brendan Eich told Cointelegraph that the firm …

A French project is building “The Internet of Trust” — and says decentralized identifiers will be a crucial part of Web 3.0. XSL Labs is developing a Secure Digital Identifier (otherwise known as SDI for short) that’s designed to ensure users have full control over their private information. In time, it’s hoped this approach will diminish the power of tech giants such as Facebook and Google. SDI aims to limit the amount of data that is shared about ourselves online, without impeding access to goods and services. The project intends to ensure zero-knowledge proofs are utilized wherever possible, which add …

Two crypto projects that are joining forces to deliver a permanent solution for privacy and efficient payments have revealed their ambitious roadmap in a live Cointelegraph broadcast. Hathor is a scalable blockchain that allows users to build their own digital assets in less than a minute. The network can achieve upwards of 200 transactions per second — and it’s been billed as a fun, accessible environment where anyone can create a token without needing a technical understanding of things like gas, ERC-20 and Solidity. As previously reported by Cointelegraph, HOPR was launched in response to increasing concerns over online data …

Swiss enterprise blockchain developer, the Concordium Foundation, has signed a joint venture agreement with the $200 billion Chinese conglomerate, Geely Holding Group — the largest shareholder in Volvo and a Fortune Global 500 company. The joint venture will be 80% owned by Geely and 20% owned by Concordium, but operationally co-managed by both companies. The venture aims to provide Chinese businesses and clients with access to new blockchain platform-based business models and decentralized applications, or DApps, which can be deployed across various industries. As previously reported, Concordium is a public and permissionless layer 1 blockchain with a user-identification layer at …

A new blockchain optimized for high frequency usage is going to be at the heart of a cutting-edge ecosystem that brings together social media, non-fungible tokens and decentralized finance — all while providing in-built privacy and minimal transaction fees. Howdoo says users, creators and advertisers are all demanding change from tech giants like Facebook and YouTube. Its decentralized, blockchain-fueled approach aims to offer an alternative to a world where algorithms are optimized for revenue instead of user experience, where advertisers are left disappointed by the performance of their campaigns, and where creators are remunerated poorly for the vibrant content they …

Cryptocurrencies are typically pseudonymous, but not necessarily private. Bitcoin (BTC) and other assets run on blockchains, with each transaction posted publicly online. During a transaction between two or more parties, assets move to different wallets, each represented by a string of characters. With these addresses and transactions visible to all, however, a certain level of trackability exists, especially if a wallet transfers funds to an exchange requiring Know Your Customer verification. Certain crypto assets, which are often referred to as privacy coins, private coins or anonymous coins, attempt to hide information about transactions, giving users more privacy. Why might someone …

The new applications and measures being implemented by public health authorities across the world during the COVID-19 pandemic have sparked debate over how to balance biosurveillance with individuals' right to the privacy of their personal information. In California, the Collaborative Charter Services Organization, which provides administrative support services to charter schools, has chosen to roll out a pandemic management system that prioritizes its users' data privacy. Called "Team.Care Network," the blockchain solution was developed by healthcare startup Solve.Care and runs as a mobile application. Solve.Care said the solution will help schools to track possible COVID-19 exposure in their community and …

The strength of the cryptocurrency market appears to be spreading to privacy-focused coins. The calm price action of Bitcoin (BTC) often sets up an intense period for altcoins to rally, where several groups of coins can start becoming bullish. One of those segments is privacy coins. For example, Monero (XMR) rallied by more than 50% last week. Meanwhile, Dash has more than doubled, with a 125% gain, while Zcash (ZEC) rallied by 70% during the same period. Monero breaks out of USD downtrend Prior to the rally, XMR was lagging behind Ether (ETH), as the construction is quite similar between …