As the digital identity space expands, we must ask ourselves whether UK organisations are ready to embrace a new era of digital identity
More citizens are becoming familiar with digital identity solutions and are demanding more from institutions, such as the UK government.
According to Curity’s new report, Plotting the Roadmap for Digital Identity, 58% of UK citizens use a digital wallet, with this trend set to continue as consumers are ready to adopt new digital technologies.
As more questions are being raised about the UK Government’s role in the ongoing developments of the digital identity space, new research reveals that 52% of UK organisations plan to incorporate new digital identity solutions into their operations, with 62% of those planning to do so in the next year. With this, the UK Government must stay ahead of the curve as it seeks to shape the trajectory of digital identity.
Currently, the UK Government has introduced a new digital identity trust framework and continues to implement large scale digital transformation projects; how these digital identities are managed and by whom, remains an unanswered question.
However, the next few years will see government organisations and the private sector wrestle for dominance over digital identity whilst citizens are asking who they can trust.
A rapidly changing landscape for digital identity solutions
We are witnessing a complete transformation in how citizens and organisations manage their online identities. Can the UK Government keep up with this pace of innovation? And can they offer robust solutions that will secure their place in the digital identity space?
Technological developments in this space are becoming more and more decentralised, giving organisations and citizens more control over their data.
New research shows that 54% of IT decision makers (ITDM) are likely or are on track to incorporate new decentralised identity solutions into their operations.
This means that the new government digital identity trust framework needs to be able to support citizens by giving them secure, seamless digital experiences and offer them control over their digital identity. It also needs to ensure that UK organisations reap the benefits of adopting this new technology.
In addition, a rapidly changing digital landscape brings new security challenges such as overcoming compromised authentication and authorisation systems.
39% of ITDMs acknowledge that hacker sophistication is the biggest related challenge they face
This change is felt among ITDMs as 39% of them acknowledge that hacker sophistication is the biggest related challenge they face. This is followed by the lack of appropriate infrastructure (33%) and the lack of team knowledge (27%).
In order to properly address these concerns, the UK Government must continue to prioritise security in its operations to protect user data and overall national security.
The pace of innovation we are seeing will put government institutions under significant strain not only in terms of regulating this space, but in terms of ensuring that their own digital transformation strategies keep up with the latest security measures.
Whilst it’s encouraging to see the UK Government come to the table with the digital identity trust framework, the task government institutions face in navigating and adapting to this changing digital identity landscape and keeping pace with the private sector can’t be underestimated.
Changing consumer attitudes in the digital space
Without consumer buy-in, digital identity solutions such as digital wallets cannot truly take off. Citizens are understandably cautious when it comes to new technologies but things are changing.
There is a lot more pressure on government institutions to regularly update and review security and identity verification practices to meet changing consumer demands, as 58% of consumers currently use a digital identity wallet and a further 32% of them use it everyday.
More crucially, of the remaining 42% of consumers not currently using digital wallets, 48% of them would definitely or probably consider using one in the future.
Consumers will also play a critical role in how digital identity continues to develop
Consumers will also play a critical role in how digital identity continues to develop over the coming years. Meeting their demands and alleviating concerns will be crucial for any organisation looking to realise the full potential and benefits that new digital identity solutions can bring.
Currently, consumers are most frequently using digital wallets for payments (62%) or in retail, through loyalty cards (61%), This familiarity that consumers have using digital wallets in these contexts does put the likes of financial institutions in an advantageous position.
Though the pandemic did provide a level of familiarity with COVID passes or passports, only 22% of consumers surveyed stated that they had used these services with a digital wallet, so there’s still work to be done to put non-financial wallet usage on par with payment related use.
Gaining public trust in sharing personal data
Whilst we see a growing optimism among UK citizens for digital identity solutions, there is still a hurdle that needs overcoming: public trust.
Despite the adoption of digital wallets, this is a universal issue, as less than half of consumers trust digital identity wallets.
However, UK Government institutions are far less likely to be trusted than other organisations as only 22% of citizens trust government institutions to store and protect their personal data in digital identity wallets, whilst financial institutions are in the lead when it comes to public trust (38%).
Government institutions will need to overcome this issue of trust and better communicate the benefits of using digital identity solutions. Government organisations will need to fortify digital identity applications as they provide a useful path towards securing the future of digital identity.
Whilst consumer behaviour does show encouraging signs when it comes to the adoption of new digital identity solutions. The issue of public trust has real potential to slow future progress particularly for government institutions.
Importance of strong adoption rate of digital identity applications
Citizens are demanding more from government institutions and to ensure that these institutions keep up with demands, government decision makers must continue to place security and innovation at the forefront of their digital identity and transformation strategies.
Continuing the strong adoption rate of digital identity applications is a must for all governments. They must be willing to step in to support consumers and businesses and ensure a secure framework is in place.
In this highly competitive space, there’s no guarantee that government institutions will win the digital identity battleground, but they undoubtedly have a vital role in the future of digital identity and must be committed to facilitating the benefits of digital identity solutions for all citizens to experience.
This piece was written and provided by Gary Archer, Product Marketing Engineer at Curity.
