One of the largest data breach of over 143 million personal records by Equifax has many wondering when and how it will ever end. Forbes brought this topic to our attention in their article, “The Equifax Breach And The Case For Digital Identity.”
With the volume of cyber crimes and data breaches, it makes you feel like your identity is a commodity – and maybe it is.
A digital identity is information used by computer systems to represent, in this case, a person. Digital identities allow our access to computers and the services they provide to be automated, and make it possible for computers to mediate relationships. The use of digital identities is widespread and many refer to it as the entire collection of information generated by a person’s online activity. This might include usernames and passwords, online search activities, birth date, social security, and purchasing history.
The scary part is your digital identity is not only a commodity, it is one that is not owned by you.
As investigators continue to look into this particular data breach, and the ones that will follow, it is time for the public to advocate for change, ownership, and security of their digital identity.
Melody K. Smith
Sponsored by Access Innovations, the world leader in taxonomies, metadata, and semantic enrichment to make your content findable.
