Big Tech companies are harvesting up to £200,000 worth of data from every internet user in the UK, according to a new report by the Web3 Foundation. The not-for-profit organisation claims that firms such as Amazon, Alphabet, Anthropic, Microsoft and Meta extract nearly £200,000 in commercial value from each UK and European internet user over a digital lifetime.
The total value is estimated at £94 trillion across the global population over six decades, equivalent to almost five years of full-time pay in the UK based on the ONS 2025 annual earnings benchmark of £39,039. The report argues that internet usage is not free, with each user paying through the vast amounts of personal data collected and stored.
Searches, purchases, locations, messages and behavioural data are routinely collected and monetised by some of the world’s most powerful tech companies, often with little transparency or user control, the report states. Gavin Wood, founder of the Web3 Foundation, said the internet operates on a hidden trade-off where users receive convenience in exchange for their activity being tracked.
“This report helps expose the scale of that imbalance,” Wood said. “The modern digital economy is powered by human data, yet the people generating that value have little visibility, control or participation in the upside.” The report suggests Web3 technology offers an alternative, using decentralised systems to give individuals greater control over their identity, digital assets and online activity.
VP Bill Laboon said: “For decades, digital platforms have been built around centralised control, where users hand over their data, identity and value in exchange for access to services. Web3 represents a fundamentally different model, one where individuals can own their digital assets, verify their identity without surrendering personal information and participate more fairly in the online economy.”
