The Use of Decentralized and Semantic Web Technologies for Personal Data Protection and Interoperability

The enactment of the General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR) has been the response of the European Union to the growing data-driven economy backed up by the largest companies in the world. It provides the data protection and portability needed by individuals that “unconsciously” generate personal data for “free” services offered by providers that lack transparency on their use. Meanwhile, the rise of Distributed Ledger Technologies (DLTs) offers new possibilities for the management of general purpose data, hence being suitable for handling personal data in a trustless scenario. These decentralized technologies bring a new concept of contract called smart because of its ability to be self-executable. DLTs and smart contracts, together with the use of Semantic Web standards, allows the creation of a decentralized digital space controlled entirely by an individual, where his personal data can be stored and transacted.