Current compliance rules create data honeypots that endanger users. Zero-knowledge proofs enable verification without exposure and privacy as a competitive edge.
Opinion by: Amal Ibraymi, legal counsel at Aztec Labs
When cybercriminals breached UnitedHealth’s tech unit in 2025, nearly 200 million people had their data exposed. A few months later, Coinbase admitted that overseas customer support agents had been bribed for access to user data. These are not isolated events; they are symptoms of a broken system.
Existing compliance rules meant to protect us force companies to stockpile vast amounts of sensitive personal data, creating irresistible honeypots for hackers. Most businesses don’t want this liability, but regulators demand it. This reality has led to the perception that privacy and compliance are fundamentally at odds.
