Users today have access to a broad range of free, web-based social services. All of these services operate under a similar model: Users entrust the service provider with their personal information and content, and in return, the service provider makes their service available for free by monetizing the user-provided information and selling the results to third parties (e.g., advertisers). In essence, users pay for these services by providing their data (i.e., giving up their privacy) to the provider.
This project is using cloud computing to re-architect web-based services in order to enable end users to regain privacy and control over their data. In this approach---a confederated architecture---each user provides the computing resources necessary to support her use of the service via cloud providers. All user data is encrypted and not exposed to any third-parties, users retain control over their information, and users access the service via a web browser as normal.
The incredible popularity of today's web-based services has lead to significant concerns over privacy and user control over data. Addressing these concerns requires a re-thinking of the current popular web-based business models, and, unfortunately, existing providers are dis-incentivized from doing so. The impact of this project will potentially be felt by the millions of users who use today's popular services, who will be provided with an alternative to the business models of today.
