Leading Development of New International Standard, WeBank Efforts to Promote Trusted Personal Data Circulation

SHENZHEN, China, Nov. 12, 2024 /PRNewswire/ -- International standards organization Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers Standards Association (IEEE SA) has recently announced the approval of the development program of a new international standard for distributed data transfer, titled "Guide for Blockchain-Based Data Transfer Applications (IEEE P3250.03)," led by WeBank, a leading digital bank in China. This is the first international standard for trusted personal data portability, and it is expected to help unlock the value of data elements and contribute a practical and innovative solution for international data flow.

The accelerating utilization of data has brought the issue of data circulation and unleashing data productivity to the forefront of global discussions. Personal data constitutes the largest portion of all data types, and its transfer between organizations often faces significant challenges due to the misalignment between the subjects of responsibility and interests.

In the past few years, several countries and regions have established the right to personal data portability in their data protection legislation. Both the EU's General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR) and China's Personal Information Protection Law empower individuals with the right to actively transfer their personal information across platforms, creating new opportunities for data flow and usage.

In practice, two distinct models for data portability have emerged: platform-led and government-led. However, both models face limitations, such as potential platform monopolies or a lack of incentive mechanisms. Consequently, the industry has not yet formed a set of internationally recognized standards for "trusted personal data portability."

The new international standard under development, led by WeBank, provides a general application framework that encompasses the rights and responsibilities of stakeholders, fundamental principles, key requirements, and processes. Its core design is to allow users to be the key participants, enabling them to initiate personal data transfers and uploads, thereby exercising their right to data portability. Leveraging blockchain technology to make data traceable and tamper-proof, the project ensures the trusted validation of user-initiated data transfers with hash value comparison. This facilitates multi-party collaboration and trusted data transmission under legal and compliant frameworks, ultimately unlocking the value of data elements.

In 2021, WeBank published a white paper titled "DDTP: Distributed Data Transfer Protocol", the first practical solution in China based on the concept of "Blockchain + Personal Data Portability." After that, WeBank, as the overall solution designer and blockchain technology provider, supported the development of the Guangdong-Macao Cross-Boundary Data Verification Platform and the Shenzhen-Hong Kong Cross-Boundary Data Verification Platform, based on DDTP and open-source blockchain platform FISCO BCOS. These are successful cases demonstrating the feasibility of the proposed DDTP solution. As of October 2024, these platforms had achieved full coverage of the cluster of 9+2 cities in the Guangdong-Hong Kong-Macao Greater Bay Area, serving over 20 financial institutions in 8 cross-border data verification scenarios.

In September, under the guidance of government bodies including the Cyberspace Administration of Shenzhen Municipality and the Hong Kong Monetary Authority, the Shenzhen-Hong Kong Cross-Boundary Data Verification Platform working group approved that WeBank Technology Services joined as a platform operator in Hong Kong, providing cross-border data verification services to institutions in both cities.

WeBank leverages existing standards to guide its technological research and development while promoting its advanced technologies and practices to establish "de facto standards." WeBank also actively interacts with international standardization organizations such as the ISO and IEEE, contributing innovative as well as proven fintech solutions to international standards. For instance, in the ISO-published "Blockchain and distributed ledger technologies – Use cases (ISO/TR 3242:2022)", 2 of the use cases were based on the FISCO BCOS platform led by WeBank.

Since its establishment, WeBank has contributed to the publication of more than 70 standards, including international, national, and industry standards in blockchain, artificial intelligence, privacy-preserving computing, and digital transformation. WeBank has been recognized as a frontrunner in the financial sector by regulators for multiple years. The approval of this program and the subsequent leadership in the development of an IEEE international standard will further strengthen WeBank's influence and voice in the international standardization arena.

About WeBank

Launched in 2014, WeBank Co., Ltd. ("WeBank") is the first digital bank in China. WeBank provides more convenient financial services to micro-, small- and medium-sized enterprises (MSMEs) and the general public, and continuously improves the quality of services in response to customers' specific needs. WeBank ranked No. 1 in The Asian Banker's Global Top 100 Digital Banks in 2022 and 2023. By June 2024, WeBank has served over 400 million retail customers and 5 million MSMEs.

About WeBank Technology Services

WeBank Technology Services was launched in Hong Kong in June 2024. WeBank Technology Services sets out to leverage WeBank's cutting-edge fintech capabilities and digital finance best practice to deliver a variety of superior digital finance and digital infrastructure solutions to digital banks, financial institutions, government agencies, and industry partners worldwide.