Kevin Bell, CFAFounder, Cadena Bitcoin · Founder, Cadena Bitcoin (developing Bitcoin credit markets and helping clients generate fiat yield or leverage Bitcoin exposure with full self-custody)

Let's talk KYC By CadenaMedia

11 Nov 2025 · 2 min

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1:33

In this commentary, the speaker argues that Know‑Your‑Customer (KYC) and identity verification have quietly become a default prerequisite for accessing a wide range of online services, extending far beyond traditional financial institutions to social media, dating apps, and other platforms. While the industry promotes KYC as a safety measure, the speaker contends that centralized databases of personal IDs are a liability: they are frequent targets of breaches, and compromised data often ends up on the dark web. The core message is that equating surveillance with security is misguided; true safety comes from minimizing data collection and avoiding reliance on a single gatekeeper that decides who can participate. The speaker urges users to reconsider handing over identification documents and to question who truly benefits from these practices, emphasizing that the safest database is one that never exists.

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Identification is quietly becoming the default requirement for access to the internet. No ID? No entry. No selfie? No account. This is how KYC culture has expanded, moving far beyond finance into social platforms and even dating apps. We've been led to believe that identity verification equals safety. The reality is that centralized databases get breached,, and information meant for internal review ends up archived on the dark web. If we want a safer internet, we need to stop equating surveillance with security. The real path to safety is minimizing what gets collected in the first place. That means building systems that do not rely on a single gatekeeper to decide who gets to participate. The safest database is the one that never existed. Ongoing and regular data breaches in the news each week are a reminder that we are all vulnerable in a world that demands ID verification just to participate in daily life. KYC is a liability, not a security measure. The more personal data a platform holds, the more dangerous a breach becomes. Normalizing ID collection puts people at risk. The existence of a database is always a risk. No matter how noble the intent. Think twice before handing over your ID to a platform you use, and ask yourself who is really being protected.