Edward Snowden, the most famous American whistleblower of recent times, launched an auction for an NFT artwork titled “Stay Free” which sold for over $ 5,4 million.
The piece shows an image of Snowden with a combination of the documents resulting from the court ruling against the National Security Agency (NSA) mass surveillance case. The original portrait was taken by British photographer Plato, who allowed the portrait to be used in the creation of the NFT.
Snowden, who was working as a contractor for the NSA, leaked documents that provided information on various mass surveillance programs that the NSA and other international intelligence agencies were carrying out in the country, violating the privacy of millions of citizens and foreigners.
"Stay Free" was purchased by PleasrDao for 2.224 ETH (over $ 5,4 million) on April 16, a DAO made up of NFT art collectors who have acquired other famous NFT pieces in the past, the most important of which is a work by prominent Taiwanese digital artist Pplpleaser, who later joined the group as an honorary member.
Freedom of the press is the main beneficiary
Since facing the NSA, Snowden has become one of the most controversial US figures in the world, having been branded a traitor by the US government and fleeing to Russia, where he recently obtained dual Russian citizenship in 2020.
Snowden has been one of the most prominent figures in advocating freedom of the press and privacy rights in the world, earning the support of millions of people around the world who have campaigned for pardon since he was forced to flee the country. .
All proceeds from the auction were donated to the Freedom of the Press Foundation, a non-profit organization that aims to defend the rights to freedom of expression and freedom of the press around the world.
Freedom of the Press Foundation executive director Trevor Timm referred to Snowden's donation, saying:
“We are grateful for the continuing impact of Snowden's whistleblowing, and there is perhaps no better memory of this impact than the first decision on the programs it exposed. We are very pleased to use the proceeds from this auction to help advance our work to develop and improve technology that can protect journalists and their sources, such as SecureDrop, our open source reporting system.
The role of cryptocurrencies and blockchain technology in the fight for privacy
Arguably the biggest drawbacks of centralization are the privacy risks it entails, which have been demonstrated by the rise of data silos like Facebook and Google, as well as the Cambridge Analytica scandal.
While not all cryptocurrencies provide anonymity to a great extent, their use of distributed ledgers and blockchains allows users to have a greater degree of anonymity than centralized consumer platforms that must comply with local regulation and their owner's arbitration.
While Snowden has criticized coins like Bitcoin for their lack of scale and privacy, he has shared his support for other projects like Zcash due to the privacy properties it offers to users interested in having their financial records readily available.
Blockchain technology and cryptocurrencies are built around advanced cryptography, as well as decentralized storage, development and governance.
Snowden spoke about the role of encryption in the fight for privacy, stating:
“Emerging applications of cryptography can play an important role in upholding our rights. This auction will stimulate the development of valuable and privacy-protective uses of cryptography to safeguard press freedom and serve the public.
There is no doubt that the right to privacy, as we knew it a few decades ago, has disappeared. Unless there are sustained efforts to restore civil rights, this trend towards greater state power will no doubt continue.
