Lucas finds AXEL

In Part II of Lucas’ story, he found many companies were still collecting vast amounts of customer information even with new privacy regulations. But, that didn’t mean he was ready to shun technology. It was a modern conundrum shared by every technophile who values their privacy.

“I’m an IT professional who loves the latest and greatest technology. I can’t close myself off from the world and go hide out in a treehouse in the woods. That shouldn’t be my only option just because I don’t want these huge companies spying on me or making detailed models of my behavior. So, I started to scour the web looking for programs and services that weren’t going to auction off my information to the highest bidder. I stumbled upon AXEL from a Google search about cloud storage, and loved what I saw.”

Lucas and AXEL Go

Specifically, Lucas found our private, secure file storage and sharing application, AXEL Go.

“AXEL Go is basically my new best friend. I get instant access to all of my files and can share them with anyone. I use it at home on my PC and on my iPhone when I’m out. The first thing that impressed me was the company kept promoting this concept called ‘data custody.’ I’d never heard of the term before, but after reading into it a bit, it really hit home. It just means they’re all about giving control of data back to the people.”

AXEL is a champion of data custody and considers personal information private property. We never mine any content stored on AXEL Go and do not sell personal information to third parties, ever.

“That in itself sets them apart from most cloud companies. But they not only respect your data, they protect it too. Their security features are way more advanced than other cloud options.”

AXEL Go utilizes three secure technologies as the backbone of AXEL Go; blockchain, the InterPlanetary File System (IPFS), and password encryption. This unique combination makes AXEL Go an industry leader in security, ensuring your content stays safe at rest and in motion.

“It’s the best of both worlds. I don’t have to worry about the company itself selling my info, but I also am less concerned about hackers breaching their system. Their servers are decentralized, and I always use encrypted passwords on my files. So hackers can’t attack a single vulnerable server to get my content, and even if they do somehow get to my files, they won’t be able to access them. I looked it up, and the encryption algorithm they use for passwords takes billions of years to brute force crack. It’s reassuring. Now, if AXEL could make a social media platform…”

A happy ending

Thank you, Lucas, for your kind words and support for AXEL products. If you’re like Lucas and want a cloud sharing solution that provides security and privacy, download AXEL Go today. It’s free to signup, and our Basic accounts include all of AXEL Go’s unique features, 2GB of storage space, and enough fuel tokens to facilitate thousands of shares. AXEL envisions a better future for the internet, where everyone’s data gets the respect it deserves. Together, we will achieve this goal.

Lucas does more research

When we last left our favorite 25-year old IT specialist, Lucas, he wasn’t feeling too hopeful. He had learned about the status quo of corporate data collection and felt powerless to stop it. But, he didn’t give up. He decided to educate himself more thoroughly on how the big players in Silicon Valley viewed their users’ privacy. He was especially interested in their responses to recent privacy legislation such as the California Consumer Privacy Act (CCPA) and the European General Data Protection Regulation (GDRP).

“I had read dozens of articles about the subject but never got any information straight from the big tech firms themselves. I thought that maybe with the adoption of the CCPA and GDRP, they might have changed their tunes. So, I did something drastic. Something I’m not sure anyone else in the world did. I read through their updated privacy policies.”

Now that’s dedication to the cause! What did Lucas find after slogging through multiple privacy policies?

“It was certainly an improvement. At least now, they had to tell you what info they collect and broadly how they use it. But, they are still hoarding your personal information. You have to opt-out of most of it, and how many people do you see doing that? I had to put on a pot of coffee to get through these privacy policies. And I hate coffee! Most people I know just clicked “Accept” on the popup and kept going about their regular routines.”

Lucas found that even with the new regulatory frameworks in place, companies still frequently had access to information such as your stored files, contact networks, GPS locations, other websites visited, and third-party advertising data.

“They’re still watching you. They’re still developing their models of you to sell to advertisers or manipulate behavior.”

So, what now?

It was apparent to Lucas that waiting on the well-known tech companies to hop aboard the privacy train wouldn’t cut it. But what options did he have?

“Unfortunately, there aren’t any mainstream alternatives to the big players when it comes to social media. If I want to stay in touch with friends and family without resorting to an old-fashioned phone call, it’s tough. I recommend going into your account and digging into the privacy settings. Opt-out of what you can and just know that you’re analyzed continuously. With other applications, luckily, you fare much better.”

This is where Lucas and AXEL finally cross paths!

“I love to store and share files in the cloud. It’s so convenient to have all my important content wherever I need it. But I wasn’t impressed with the popular cloud storage services out there due to privacy concerns. And that includes their security features too. Because even if your privacy policy is decent, if you’re storing all my documents on an insecure server, it doesn’t really matter. So I looked into what else was out there that might better fit my needs. That’s when AXEL popped up.”

A perfect match

In part three of this blog series about Lucas’ journey, we’ll delve into what attracted him to our company and AXEL Go. Check back soon for an exciting conclusion about how AXEL strives to make the internet a better place for everyone.

Meet Lucas

Lucas is a 25-year old tech support specialist for a medium-sized company in Richmond, Virginia. He’s worked there for the last three years and has risen from a junior employee to his current salaried position. Throughout his time at the company, he’s learned a great deal about computing technology and general cybersecurity best practices. He now reads popular cybersecurity blogs to stay up-to-date and knowledgeable about his field.

“To be honest, in college, I never really kept up on cybersecurity trends. I guess I was too busy keeping tabs on who was attending what party. But after I graduated and got my first real job, I started paying more attention.”

While doing this, however, he has discovered some concerning trends.

“That’s when I noticed two things: 1) Hacks and breaches occur WAY more often than I thought; and 2) Companies are tracking, buying, and selling a LOT of personal data.

When you start following these cybersecurity blogs, there are articles almost every day about massive data breaches or hacks fetching million-dollar ransoms. Then, when you get into the details, you see 10 million, 40 million, 200 million personal records breached. It’s crazy!”

Upon further inspection, Lucas found the sheer number of records breached to be less troublesome than other aspects.

“But that’s only the beginning of the rabbit hole. You start to unpack these breaches and find that the company that left hundreds of millions of personal records vulnerable didn’t have hundreds of millions of users. So, where did those records come from?  Well, they bought them from other giant companies that are doing the same thing they’re doing; mining their users for advertising information. It gets really gross. You finally realize that the individual has no clue about who has their data or how it’s being used and sold.”

“And, it’s kind of a sad progression. You go from feeling shocked, to upset, to powerless in a short period of time. It’s difficult to know where to start in the fight against these kinds of data collection policies. You eventually settle into a hopeless feeling of acceptance. The companies responsible make too much money for anything to change.”

The end of the story?

Luckily, this story does not have to end on such a sour note. There are other tech companies out there, fighting for data privacy and protection. You just have to know where to look!

In an upcoming article, we’ll follow Lucas on his journey as he searches for alternative ways to utilize modern technology. Will Lucas have his hope rekindled? Is there a plausible future that treats individuals like people and not statistics? Check back soon to see how the next chapter plays out.