Thread by @BiIndia

#Datacracy | This spam blocker may add a layer of anonymity to your #SocialMedia presence while #Twitter and #Facebook are under pressure to verify their users

@doosra_official @avuchi

businessinsider.in/tech/apps/news…

By @pabsgill

@doosra_official @avuchi @pabsgill #Facebook, #WhatsApp, #Twitter and other #SocialMedia platforms have been asked to verify the identity of their users — this could be either through phone numbers or government-issued IDs like the Aadhaar card.

@doosra_official @avuchi

@doosra_official @avuchi @pabsgill Putting your number online is not just a risk in the increasing government surveillance. It's also about privacy & online safety since personal data can have in-real-life (IRL) consequences like being targeted by stalkers, trolls or people looking to hack into your bank account.

@doosra_official @avuchi @pabsgill An Indian startup based in Hyderabad called @doosra_official has a possible solution.

@avuchi

@doosra_official @avuchi @pabsgill Instead of using your real number to sign up, use an alternative number to create a secondary digital identity. This doesn’t mean going out to buy a new SIM, but creating a second app-based ‘virtual’ number.

@doosra_official @avuchi

@doosra_official @avuchi @pabsgill The Indian government’s mandate to use phone numbers as a way of ‘voluntary’ verification — a know-your-customer process, of sorts — for accessing these online platforms poses a new threat.

@doosra_official @avuchi

@doosra_official @avuchi @pabsgill “This means that any message you share on #WhatsApp, #Facebook and other platforms that is re-shared, makes your number that much more accessible to various databases, leading to spam from real estate offers, insurance scams, stalkers and worse,” said @avuchi.

@doosra_official