In the bigbasket data breach, just one among many such incidents, my information—along with the data of over 24 million other customers—was exposed. The breach didn’t just include basic KYC details, but also highly sensitive information: full names, phone numbers, dates of birth, all addresses, ordered items, IP addresses, and potentially even raw credit card data, among other things.

This event was a major wake-up call for me. It was a turning point that pushed me toward decentralized social media and web3 platforms. I believed that, as more people experienced these breaches and issues with fake KYCs, awareness would rise, and many would make the shift to web3 for better privacy and control.

Unfortunately, due to a string of crashes and high-profile scams in web3—FTX/SBF being prime examples—that momentum has stalled. Trust in web3 has been eroded, pushing us back to the status quo.

Now, people seem to have given up hope for decentralized solutions and are letting web2 companies continue with questionable practices. Despite everything, I still find myself required to perform KYC on many platforms, with little real choice.