ConsenSys To Update MetaMask Crypto Wallet in Response To Privacy Backlash

ConsenSys, the company behind the MetaMask crypto wallet, said Tuesday it will release a series of updates to the platform in response to user backlash regarding its data-collection practices. From a report: In a statement, the company explained how and why it was sharing MetaMask user internet-protocol information with Infura, the ConsenSys-made RPC (remote procedure call) service for reading and writing data to the Ethereum blockchain. A change in wording to the ConsenSys user agreement last month revealed that MetaMask, by default, shared users' transaction data with Infura alongside their IP addresses. The revelation sparked outrage in a vocal corner of the crypto community, with some users worrying aloud that their transaction data wasn't as private as they assumed. In its statement, ConsenSys clarified that it would only "collect wallet and IP address information in connection with 'write' requests, also known as transactions, when MetaMask users broadcast transactions through Infura's RPC endpoints." "We do not store wallet account address information when a MetaMask user makes a 'read' request through Infura, for example in order to check their account balances within MetaMask," the company said. According to MetaMask co-founder Dan Finlay, the platform began collecting and sharing IP-linked transaction data with Infura in 2018 to prevent network overload and to monitor pending transactions. Finlay said MetaMask cannot stop logging IP addresses entirely; if a user interacts with an RPC service like Infura, their IP address will always be visible. ConsenSys, however, will stop logging user IP information directly alongside their transaction data, thereby making it more difficult for the firm to trace transaction activity back to specific users. ConsenSys said it will also make updates to the MetaMask interface.

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