Who Owns Your Data? Web3’s Promise vs. Web2 Reality

If you deleted your account tomorrow, what would you actually lose—and what would still be floating around the internet? That simple question sits at the heart of a messy debate about “data ownership.” Web2 platforms promise convenience but run on data they collect and control. Web3 promises that you—not a platform—hold the keys. The truth, as always, lives somewhere in between.

This piece unpacks what “ownership” really means, where the law stands in North America, what Web3 is getting right (and where it stumbles), and how you can make smarter choices today.

First, what does “owning your data” actually mean?

Ownership sounds absolute, but with data it’s better to think in layers of control:

• Transparency: Can you see what’s collected about you?
• Access: Can you get a copy (in a usable format)?
• Portability: Can you move it somewhere else and keep your relationships intact?
• Deletion: Can you get it erased across systems that hold it?
• Agency: Can you decide who sees what, when, and on what terms?
• Economic rights: Can you monetize or benefit from your data, or at least stop others from doing so without your say?

Web2 gives you some of these—mostly through privacy settings and legally required tools. Web3 aims for all of them by putting your identity and data under your control via cryptographic keys. That’s the promise, anyway.

Web2 reality: Your data lives on other people’s servers

Traditional platforms (social networks, apps, ad tech) run on centralized databases. You create content and profile data; they store it, analyze it, and often share it with partners. When you click “I agree,” you usually grant a broad license to host, distribute, and sometimes even monetize your content. Even if you can download your data, your relationships, rankings, and reach don’t travel with you—because the network effects live inside the platform.

North America snapshot (plain-English version):

U.S.: There’s no single comprehensive federal privacy law. Instead, a patchwork of state rules applies. California’s regime is the most expansive and continues to evolve.

California: The California Privacy Rights Act (CPRA) grants rights to access, delete, correct, and opt out of sale or sharing of personal information, plus limits on sensitive data use. California also regulates “data brokers” (companies whose business is trading in personal data) and is making it easier for you to force deletion across the industry.

• By July 1, 2025, data brokers must publicly report key privacy metrics (like how many deletion requests they honored and how fast they responded).
• Starting Aug 1, 2026, California will offer a one-stop “accessible deletion mechanism” for consumers to request deletion by all registered data brokers, with ongoing processing every 45 days.

Periodic third-party audits phase in from 2028, with added disclosures from 2029. Source: California Privacy Protection Agency guidance on data brokers (see “Important Future Deadlines”).

https://cppa.ca.gov/data_brokers/

What this means for you:

• You can pull levers—request access, delete, and opt out of sale/sharing—but results vary by company and state.
• “Portability” in Web2 usually means you can download a file. It does not mean you can leave with your audience, ranking, or social graph intact.
• Data brokers—largely invisible to consumers—remain a significant source of collection and resale, though California is tightening the screws.

Web3’s promise: You hold the keys

Web3 flips the default: identity and assets live in wallets you control, not on a single company’s servers. That unlocks three big shifts:

1 - Portable identity

Your account is a cryptographic keypair, not a username locked to one site. You can sign into any compatible app with the same identity—no “new account” required.

2 - Data minimization and selective disclosure

Instead of handing over full profiles or documents, you can present cryptographic proofs that reveal only what’s needed (e.g., “over 18” without sharing your birthdate). This is formalized in open standards called verifiable credentials (VCs). In May 2025, the World Wide Web Consortium (W3C) made Verifiable Credentials 2.0 an official web standard, reinforcing a privacy-respecting, interoperable way to share trusted claims.

Source: W3C press release, May 15, 2025.

https://www.w3.org/press-releases/2025/verifiable-credentials-2-0/

3 - Protocols over platforms

When identity and data are tied to open protocols, multiple apps can compete to serve you without trapping you. In practice, that means you can switch clients and (in principle) keep your social connections, content, and reputation.

Real-world progress worth noting:

• Social protocols: Networks like Farcaster and Bluesky (AT Protocol) are building toward account portability. The idea: create your identity once, then choose the client you like without losing your followers or posts. It’s not perfect or ubiquitous, but it’s a concrete departure from Web2 lock-in.
• Login and payments: “Sign-in with a wallet” avoids new account creation and lets you bring an existing identity—and even assets—across apps.
• Credentials: Early deployments of VCs support use cases like age checks, diplomas, and KYC attestations with less data sharing and better verifiability.

Where the Web3 story gets complicated

Keys are powerful—and fragile. If you control your keys, you control your identity and assets. Lose your keys, and you lose access. Social recovery and better wallets help, but the UX still intimidates mainstream users.

Public by default can clash with privacy. Blockchains are transparent. Many projects rely on off-chain storage, encryption, or zero-knowledge proofs to protect sensitive data—but the design space is still maturing.

Moderation and safety are hard. Protocols that let anyone build clients also make abuse prevention and content policy enforcement more complex.

Compliance still applies. Even if “the user owns the data,” businesses must honor deletion requests, minimization principles, and local laws. Web3’s ethos doesn’t override regulatory duties.

Network effects haven’t vanished. Moving your identity is one thing; moving all your friends, customers, and attention is another. Social gravity is real.

Web2 vs. Web3, in practical terms

Who holds the keys?

• Web2: The platform.
• Web3: You (ideally), via a wallet.

Can you leave and keep your relationships?

• Web2: Rarely.
• Web3: Increasingly yes, where protocols are used (still uneven).

Can you share only what’s necessary?

• Web2: Mostly all-or-nothing profile/data access.
• Web3: Selective disclosure is built into standards like VCs.

Who sets the rules?

• Web2: Companies, via terms of service.
• Web3: Open protocols and code, plus whatever client/app you choose—still subject to law.

A simple ladder of data control

Level 1: Transparency (see what’s collected)

Level 2: Access (download your data)

Level 3: Deletion (get it erased)

Level 4: Portability (move it and keep relationships)

Level 5: Self-custody + interoperability (you hold the keys; apps compete to serve you)

Most Web2 experiences hover around Levels 1–3. The best Web3 experiences aim for Levels 4–5.

What you can do right now

For everyday users:

• Use your rights: If you’re in California (or dealing with businesses that serve Californians), request access and deletion and opt out of sale/sharing. Data-broker deletion will get easier as California’s one-stop mechanism comes online (phased deadlines through 2026–2029).
• Source: CPPA data broker guidance.
• https://cppa.ca.gov/data_brokers/
• Lock down settings: Turn off unnecessary tracking and location history in apps you use.
• Try a portable identity: Experiment with a reputable wallet and a protocol-aligned social client to see how it feels to “bring your account” with you. Back up your recovery phrase securely.
• Share less by default: If an app doesn’t need a piece of info, don’t hand it over.

For builders and organizations:

• Design for portability: Offer clean data exports, import paths, and APIs aligned with open standards (DIDs/VCs where appropriate).
• Minimize and prove: Collect less, and use verifiable credentials or privacy-preserving proofs to reduce sensitive data handling.
• Prepare for broker rules: If you touch third-party consumer data, track California’s reporting, deletion, and audit timelines.
• Make safety a feature: Combine protocol openness with robust client-side moderation tools and transparent policies.

Bottom line

“Who owns your data?” isn’t just a legal question—it’s a design choice. Web2 gave us convenience at the cost of control. Web3’s best ideas—self-custodied identity, open protocols, verifiable credentials—push control back to people. The future likely blends both: user-held identity and portable relationships, wrapped in apps that are delightful to use and compliant by default.

We’re not fully there yet. But you can start climbing the ladder—one choice, and one protocol, at a time.