According to @1HowardWu, Equifax’s 2017 breach exposed 147 million credit records, Target’s 2013 incident compromised 40 million cards, and Facebook has faced multiple large-scale leaks, underscoring the systemic risk of centralized databases where one compromise impacts millions, source: @1HowardWu. He states zero-knowledge proofs let users verify facts without revealing raw data, enabling selective disclosure that prevents over-exposure while avoiding centralized storage, source: @1HowardWu. He highlights concrete use cases such as proving over-21 age at a bar and passing a credit check without revealing income or financial history, where verifiers learn only what is necessary and data stays with the user, source: @1HowardWu. He adds that eliminating central data stores removes a single point of failure, and that Aleo’s proof system is designed to enable user-owned data, source: @1HowardWu. For traders tracking the ZK infrastructure narrative, the post emphasizes identity and credit verification as real-world ZK applications relevant to privacy-preserving networks such as Aleo, source: @1HowardWu.

According to Vitalik Buterin, centralized points of mass data collection pose significant security risks as they can be accessed by various adversaries, referencing recent articles on data breaches (source: The Guardian, NY Times). This criticism highlights the potential vulnerabilities in centralized systems, which is a critical consideration for traders evaluating the security of blockchain platforms and technology investments.