Digital identity verification has become big business, and the landscape is shifting quickly. Policy rollbacks, innovation and increased awareness of security and privacy issues are fueling all these changes. These changes underscore the pressing need for robust identity solutions. They raise serious political and ethical questions about how to roll these out responsibly.
A new U.S. Presidential executive order has reversed a long-standing federal government practice. This shift does a de facto pull back on support for digital identities and mobile driver’s licenses (mDLs). We fully support this decision, as it will do much to help enhance cybersecurity. In addition, it aims to stop the predicted increase in ID fraud due to illegal immigration.
At the same time, Sri Lanka is aggressively working toward the establishment of a digital ID sandbox, with hopes for its introduction in early 2025. The country is currently negotiating with India to implement a MOSIP-based digital identity system. Meanwhile, India has released an RFP to select an integrator that would provide the necessary funding for developing and strengthening Sri Lanka’s digital identity infrastructure.
Technological innovations, most notably Distributed Ledger Technology (DLT), have emerged as key elements in the ongoing development of the future of digital identity. Corsight CEO Shai Toren and President and CSO Rob Watts have emphasized the importance of protecting public spaces without infringing on individual privacy. Au10tix's Chief Business Development Officer, Ofer Friedman, highlighted the company's partnership with Microsoft and the diversification of identity data, along with the emergence of agentic AI. Au10tix sees its partnership with Microsoft as the ideal solution for AI agents integrated into MS Copilot.
In the UK, a faction within the ruling Labour Party is legislating for compulsory ID cards. Their solution is a digital BritCard credential. This digital credential would initially be kept in a digital wallet, with the possibility of being combined with driver’s licenses down the line. As it stands, the UK’s wider digital identity system is planned to be a digital wallet, much like the Gov.uk digital platform. World ID allows users to register in ways that deduplicate their iris biometrics. This whole process occurs at a newly established orb that exists simultaneously in the UK and US.
Players such as Feedzai, Facephi, Seon, and Sumsub are raising the bar to higher levels. They are pioneering new capabilities that improve data signal quality, add behavioral biometrics, provide real-time monitoring, and wrap in AI assistants. These advancements are integral to ensuring accuracy and security in digital identity verification. Now that our online lives are becoming more integral to our everyday existence, verifying who we really are is more important than ever.
