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cyber-securityJanuary 20248 min read

Digital ID

Explores the growing importance of digital identity protection during Cybersecurity Awareness Month. Covers types of digital identities, how breaches occur, the transition to a cookie-less future, and why consent-based permission marketing is the critical foundation for data privacy and trusted customer relationships.

YA

Yaron Assabi

Group Founder & CEO

Digital ID

Photo by Digital Resilience on Pexels

Digital ID

As we continue with Cybersecurity Awareness Month, it would be fitting to touch on Digital ID before wrapping up the month.

Digital Identity is a big topic right now, and for a good reason. With the rapid digitization of our lives, the amount of data we create and share daily continues to increase at an alarming rate.

"Digital Identity is one of the cornerstones of the digital economy." - Juri Rates, Prime Minister, Estonia.

The problem is that much of this data isn't being stored securely, which leaves consumers more vulnerable than ever to hackers and cybercriminals who can use that information maliciously.

What is a Digital Identity?

A digital identity represents a person, organisation, or other entity in a digital environment. It can include all types of online accounts and log-in credentials, as well as any information associated with those accounts - name, address, phone number, email address, payment information, proof of residence and more.

Digital identities are increasingly important to cybersecurity as more of our daily activities move online. This shift has led to an increase in the amount of sensitive information we share online, putting digital identity protection at the forefront of the cybersecurity conversation.

Why Is Digital Identity Protection So Important?

Many of the digital accounts we create are susceptible to cyberattacks, which can lead to a host of negative consequences for both individuals and businesses. If a hacker gains access to your email account, they could send malicious phishing emails from your address. Similarly, if hackers access your social media accounts, they could post malicious content on your behalf.

"We need trusted access for all. Digital identity is the building block towards trusted access, authentication and privacy." - James C. Smith, CEO, Thomson Reuters.

According to research, the average time to find out about a data breach in a firm is 206 days, and the average time to recuperate from a data breach incident can go up to 70 days.

Types of Digital Identities

There are many different types of digital identities: login credentials (email address and password), social media accounts, mobile apps used for daily services and workplace communication, and digital wallets. A growing number of people are using digital wallets, especially in Africa with low penetration of credit and debit cards, to make purchases online.

How Does a Digital Identity Breach Occur?

A data breach occurs when an attacker gains unauthorized access to sensitive information. Most data breaches occur due to negligence of the website owner or hosting provider. In other cases, attackers use malicious software (malware) to infiltrate security systems. If hackers gain access to your login credentials, they can use that information to break into other accounts associated with your digital identity.

Digital Identity Protection

Given all of the risks, it's essential to take steps to protect your digital identities and sensitive data. McAfee, for example, makes it easy for you and the entire family to stay safer online with antivirus that prevents, detects, and eliminates malware and viruses on all types of devices. Customers enjoy 24/7/365 protection with alerts to sidestep risky websites, links, and files.

Privacy and the Cookie-less Future

To create a relevant online consumer experience, advertisers have long relied on data and cookies to identify valuable audiences. Over time, privacy concerns arose, and demands were made for significant changes to consumer control and consent.

Third-party cookies are on the way out as a form of identification. We as consumers want control over our data, and therefore POPIA and GDPR insist on "the right for transparency and the right to be forgotten" or the right to have access and control over the data being collected.

In a cookie-less world, "permission-based marketing" is a critical success factor. Companies' goal is to increase the level of permission over time to get to know their customers better and personalise products and services based on consumer preference.

Consent as the Foundation

The end of third-party cookies does not mean the end of tracking - the need for valid end-user consent to process personal data will persist. Your website will still need to obtain explicit consent before any data is stored on a user's browser, regardless of what technology is used.

The basic idea that a person online gets to say "yes" or "no" to strangers who want to collect their personal data is simple and powerful. That is why we launched Optional.me to ensure that we manage consent and information security and provide consumers with the ability to always feel that "It is about me, and it is always optional."

Building trusted and customer-centric relationships across integrated ecosystems is a critical success factor for digital transformation. #DoingSomethingGreat is putting consent at the heart of Digital ID and data privacy.