ConsenSys, the developer of MetaMask that is one of the most popular crypto wallets of recent times, reduced the storage time of MetaMask’s user data to 7 days immediately after the great reaction of the community.
In a recent blog post, the company released its data retention update. In this data retention update, the retention period of critical user data, such as wallet addresses and users’ IP addresses, has been reduced to seven days.
ConsenSys updated its privacy policy towards the end of November 2022. Some of the data provided by the user, including demographic information such as name, username, gender, and date of birth, and profile information, including username and password, were started to be collected by MetaMask. The data collected included users’ communications with other people, as well as financial and transaction information.
In the statement for ConsenSys’ other product, Infura, it was written that users collect IP addresses when they send a transaction. Infura is used as a Remote Procedure Call (RPC) provider and connects your wallet to smart contracts on a blockchain.
This update to ConsenSys’ products has faced criticism for the privacy of members of the crypto community. In the latest announcement by ConsenSys, the update led to discussions on how to prioritize the privacy of MetaMask and Infura users.
ConsenSys had spent the past week investigating issues right after their latest update. According to ConsenSys’ statement, user data such as IP address and wallet address were stored and then deleted immediately. According to another statement by ConsenSys, they were trying to reduce the retention period to 7 days.
The data collected by ConsenSys is used in line with the limitations described in the privacy policies. According to the statement of the developer company of MetaMask, wallet and IP address information is only collected for purposes such as load balancing and DDoS protection. No user data collected was ever sold, and it is certainly not planned to be sold.
