World Economic Forum announces Presidio Principles as a foundation of blockchain ecosystem design

The World Economic Forum’s Global Blockchain Council (the WEF) unveiled its Presidio Principles on May 22, 2020, outlining the organization’s foundational values for a decentralized future. The need for cross-industry solutions was demonstrated by the recent launch of the InterWork Alliance as a platform-neutral nonprofit organization dedicated to creating the standards frameworks needed to increase innovation across token-enabled ecosystems.

In its announcement, the WEF noted that blockchain technology is a pillar of the Fourth Industrial Revolution, enabling “new business and governance models that help enhance security, accountability, and transparency for people worldwide.” Signatories to the Presidio Principles immediately following announcement include ConsenSys (creator of MetaMask and Infura), the World Food Programme, Blockchain Research Institute, Everledger, Electronic Coin Company (creator of Zcash), Protocol Labs (developer of Filecoin and IPFS), the Presidency of Colombia, CoinShares, OmiseGo, and Andreessen Horowitz.

The Presidio Principles focus on data ownership, control, and portability, each of which are furthered through use of blockchain technology. Highlights include a commitment to the availability of source code, the ability of users to manage their own cryptographic keys (enabling consent of access to data stored in third-party systems and data portability between systems), appropriate disclosure of data risks, adherence to international technical security standards, transparency of governance protocols, and the ability to opt-out of applications that do not meet international governance and data protection standards.

The Presidio Principles are divided into four categories of rights for participants.  These are the Presidio Principles as set out by the WEF:

Transparency & Accessibility: A participant should have access to information that would enable them to:

• Understand how a service is operated, including potential risks of the service, availability of source code, and the rules and standards upon which it is based.
• Understand the potential risks and benefits of a service’s use of blockchain technology.
• Understand system performance expectations and where the responsibility for service delivery lies.
• Understand the rights and obligations of different participants in the system.

Agency & Interoperability: The right of participants to own and manage their data:

• Create, manage, and independently store cryptographic keys.
• Manage the consent of data stored in third-party systems.
• Port data between interoperable systems or parts of a system.
• Revoke consent for future data collection.
• Have access to information sufficient to facilitate system interoperability.

Privacy & Security: Participants should be able to:

• Assess if their data is at risk through appropriate disclosure procedures, which may include, but are not limited to, an examination of audit results, certifications, or source code.
• Have their data protected in accordance with internationally recognized technical security standards. 
• Limit data collection to that which is necessary and data use to the purpose for which it was provided.
• Verify – through third-party or self-created tools – that operations have been completed and confirmed in accordance with the system’s rules.

Accountability & Governance: A participant should be able to:

• Access information needed to: (a) understand the system’s governance and rules and (b) pursue effective recourse mechanisms.
• Opt out of using applications that don’t treat data in accordance with internationally recognized governance and data protection standards.
• Rectify demonstrably false, inaccurate, or incomplete data when necessary.

We expect that the Presidio Principles will have a significant impact on the design of blockchain ecosystems.  To learn more about their implications, please contact either of the authors.