“Excellent, so she knows her way around Blockchain. It’s time we got 100% of our clients over, enough is enough with the old web”. With a subtle nod, Tess signals for Jay to tell her to come on up.

This kind of role was once regarded as ‘IT’, but now is a key part of every Management Group, and is a pivotal part of every strategic decision. Not a single company would consider not bolstering up its local and global security efforts. There is a story in the press almost every week about a billion dollar company brought to its knees overnight from a data breach. Most of the time it is data theft, but other cases can be sabotage or even a straight up ‘corporation homicide’. Hacking has become big business, and so protecting it is a case of ‘at whatever cost’.

“Amanda, please come in. It is wonderful to meet you in person, did Jay get you a coffee?”

“Hi Tess, yes he did, thanks. How are you?”.

Tess is immediately distracted by the glowing red light on her desk. The light signals to her Jay has a critical message. Very rarely does she see a red light, meaning something is really wrong. Even orange is irregular, and is cause for an immediate response.

“Sorry Amanda - Jay, what is it?”

“It’s Brightspark. There is a 98% chance there has been a breach. An admin login was duplicated, and it looks like they’re copying across customer data. It appears the encryption is still intact, but the data is leaving our network, ” Jay voiceovers as the display on Tess’s screen gives an overview of the breach in real time.

Brightspark is a knowledge marketplace for consumers to learn and teach almost anything. It is the new way to learn, and the model has been replicated many times, almost entirely replacing formal education.

If the Brightspark data is compromised, the client is liable for millions of dollars in fines, but most importantly, it will be a mark on their security rating record indefinitely, as the Blockchain will record it for future customers to see for the rest of time.

“Tess” interjects Amanda, the CSO candidate, “where do you keep the encryption key?”.

“It is stored in headquarters in Sydney, why do you ask?” responds Tess.

“Re-coding a new encryption and then getting the key on the blockchain is the fastest way to eliminate the threat.”

Tess looks at her, with a face that says ‘it can’t be that simple’. But, the Blockchain never ceases to surprise her with its simplicity and power.

_

Later that afternoon, Amanda was offered, and accepted, the job. If it wasn’t for her, it may have been a different outcome for Brightspark - and for Tess.

Brightspark has since tripled in size since shifting the platform onto the Blockchain. All content is now accessible by a secure key which is easily distributed, and all tutors and content is authenticated with a history of totally authentic reviews and career notes.

The growth can also be attributed to a major a investment in the ‘Customer Direct’ marketing model. They chose to shift their traditional media budget to the Customer Direct - spending the entire budget on the online customer reward platform intentmarket.com.

This is a major evolution in marketing. Instead of brands bidding for attention in search, they can bid directly to customers who are ready to buy. You offer a bonus payment for anyone who shows intent for wanting to pay for a tutor, or join a class. The payment goes directly to the customer, instead of the search companies.

It is a simple system, because it benefits the customer first, which is central to how this new world works.