By Adam Turteltaub

These days, the term “blockchain” is no longer novel. Yet, many still struggle to understand what exactly it is and what implications, if any, it may have for a compliance program.

Segev Shani (LinkedIn), Chief Compliance & Regulatory Officer at Neopharm explains that it is more than the tool underlying cryptocurrency. Blockchain is a technology in which data is stored in blocks, and once that block is full, another one is formed, creating a chain. This data is not held in one place but is distributed on multiple servers, which ensures that it cannot be improperly manipulated.

When it comes to privacy, though, there is a privacy-blockchain paradox. While the security of the data is protected via blockchain, the data, itself, cannot be deleted. So, should compliance teams simply say “no” to using blockchain with personal data?

According to Segev, not necessarily. A growing number of tools have been developed to manage this issue, including the ability for a data subject to turn their data on or off, making it either public or private as they see fit.

It’s an intriguing area, and well worth the time to listen in to learn more.