Privacy Mining

Definition ∞ Privacy mining is a conceptual term referring to the extraction or analysis of private user data, often without explicit consent, for commercial or other purposes. In the digital economy, this describes the process where user activities, preferences, and personal information are collected and processed to generate insights or value. It often occurs through tracking mechanisms embedded in web services or applications. The practice raises significant ethical and data protection concerns among users and regulators.
Context ∞ Privacy mining is a contentious issue in the broader digital landscape, directly impacting discussions around data sovereignty and user rights. In the crypto space, it contrasts sharply with the privacy-preserving goals of many decentralized technologies, which seek to limit such data extraction. News often covers regulatory attempts to curb such practices, like GDPR, and the development of privacy-centric alternatives within the web3 ecosystem.