The digital landscape is going through a radical shift right now. As Rick Song, CEO of Persona told me, bots are on their way to becoming the largest threat to digital identity—overtaking even fraudsters. This transformation is driven by the increasing sophistication of artificial intelligence (AI) and its widespread deployment in automated online activities. Indeed, by 2030, it’s projected that bots will create 90 percent of web traffic. This wave only serves to further complicate identifying the good users from the bad actors. While Persona is definitely focused on the high-assurance use cases that warrant friction, their end goal is ultimately to create a seamless identity experience. Existing security measures such as IP logging and browser fingerprinting have proven ineffective against today’s advanced threats. If we want to get this right, we have to completely reimagine how we authenticate and maintain digital identities.

The Rising Tide of Bots

It is striking how the internet—once seen as a great plane of human interaction—is now arguably a space dominated by these same bots. Automated programs are designed to do precisely and exactly what they’re programmed to do. Sometimes they’re AI-powered assistants that can be super useful advocates on your behalf. The rapid rise in bot traffic is a major concern for business and security pros. Identity vs. intent The real question today, says Rick Song, CTO of SocialChorus, is no longer just whether something is a bot or human.

"The core question now isn't just whether something is a bot or a human," - Rick Song

The real issue is what the host site would like to allow access to a particular generative AI bot.

"It's about whether the host site wants that AI bot to get access," - Rick Song

This clarification reads like mere semantics, but it’s critical for preserving a healthy and secure online ecosystem.

AI's Impact on Digital Identity

Now AI has become a double-edged sword in the fight for digital identity. It presents unique opportunities to automate processes and work more efficiently. It’s complicating their ability to tell the difference between good users and bad actors. As Song explained to us, AI has just sped up an issue that was already getting out of hand on the internet.

"What AI has done is accelerate a problem that's already existed on the internet for a long time," - Rick Song

AI–powered bots are getting more advanced every day. It increases the difficulty for existing security technology to detect and prevent fraud. Despite AI’s rapid advancements, we need to find more innovative, smarter and more flexible ways to verify digital identities.

Looking ahead to 2025, Song anticipates that the focus will shift from new AI advancements to societal and governmental responses to AI's rise.

"I actually think the story this year will be how society and governments react — trying to slow things down," - Rick Song

This is a sign that more society stakeholders are understanding the real dangers of AI. In response, there is an increasing demand for thoughtful regulations and policies to mitigate these risks.

The Future of Identity Verification

Persona has emerged as a leader in creating pioneering identity verification solutions that can withstand the evolving threats posed in this AI age. Its deployment architecture is three-layered. This architecture incorporates orchestration, verification – including bias and audit capabilities – and data management to provide a holistic solution to identity assurance. Song imagines a day when identity is not just a shaping gatekeeper, but instead an enabler of positive online transactions. Along the way, he suggests the idea of a proxy identity, using an analogy that most of us are very familiar with from our credit cards. Consumers rely on card issuers and networks to keep their financial information safe. Just as well, Song wants us to be able to develop that same sort of confidence for digital identities.

He envisions an easy identity verification experience, akin to using a crypto token. This strategy would alleviate concerns around data privacy and security.

"If it was as invisible as just a token, I don't think there's any question of buy-in," - Rick Song

Song makes an interesting parallel between the evolution of identity and payments.

"In many ways, identity is maybe a decade behind the same evolution in payments," - Rick Song

Prior to the creation and enforcement of PCI compliance, running an eCommerce business was a dangerous pursuit. Without these protections, consumers have long ago learned that they must depend upon the goodwill of their issuers and card networks.