GOOD NEWS FOR PRIVACY; FRANCE IS SET TO BLOCK LIBRA, FACEBOOK’S OWN CRYPTOCURRENCY

ORIGINAL CONTENT: https://www.securitynewspaper.com/2019/09/13/good-news-for-privacy-france-is-set-to-block-libra-facebooks-own-cryptocurrency/

Governments around the world still don’t rely on the use of virtual assets. Cybersecurity specialists report that France has informed about its intention to block the development of Libra, Facebook’s own cryptocurrency, throughout the European Union.

The French government, through Economy Minister Bruno Le Maire, argues that Libra will not advance in Europe until all doubts about this project are discussed, so they’re asking Facebook to address concerns about the risks for users and for economy in countries where Libra gets permission.

“Under the current conditions, we cannot allow the development of Libra in the European community,” said Le Maire.

The Libra project was revealed a couple of months ago and immediately began to generate uncertainty, as macroeconomic specialists around the world believe that the launch of such a virtual currency could take away nations, and their central banks, control over their economy.

The cybersecurity community also has some doubts about the development of Libra. As we know, the most recent years have been a nightmare for Facebook users in terms of data privacy, as news of the constant privacy breaches committed by the company, such as the Cambridge Analytica scandal, keep appearing. Therefore, mass use of Libra could expose Facebook users to even more sensitive data leak incidents.

In addition, given its prominent position as an information posting and sharing platform, cybersecurity experts fear that Facebook may deploy smear campaigns against alternatives in the cryptocurrency market, such as Bitcoin. Virtual assets are extremely volatile, and news campaign or malicious intentioned papers or articles could have disastrous consequences for Libra’s competitors.

Experts from the International Institute of Cyber Security (IICS) mention that, rather than the protection of users’ information, this measure by the French government seeks to protect the financial sovereignty of nations, as the massed use of a virtual asset could leave behind the use of the currency regulated by a central authority, hampering nations’ macroeconomics efforts.