Digital systems should work for people.
Common Data explains how trust, privacy, and proof can exist online without constant data collection or surveillance.
Something about our digital world feels wrong.
Files are overwritten.
Records lose their history.
Proving simple facts means handing over full documents.
When mistakes happen or systems fail, people are left without clear evidence —
and institutions are left without a reliable basis for trust.
It doesn’t have to be this way.
Digital systems can be designed to:
- preserve history instead of overwriting it
- prove facts without revealing identity
- minimise data collection by default
- fail gracefully instead of catastrophically
These are architectural choices — not behavioural ones.
Common Data exists to explain this clearly.
This project is about public understanding.
We translate complex digital infrastructure questions into plain language, everyday examples, and reasonable expectations —
so people can recognise when systems are working well, and when simpler, safer approaches are possible.