The Business Roundtable has issued a government and industry-centric plan designed to address methods of strengthening digital identity while reducing identity theft and fraud.
“With digital identity being a key enabler for participation in digital interactions, it must not only be secure but also convenient so it can be used across sectors and in daily interactions,” the Building Trusted & Resilient Digital Identity report noted. “To continue to reap the benefits of the online world, it is imperative that the U.S. government and the private sector work together to strengthen digital identity without sacrificing the speed or convenience that today’s society demands. Meeting this goal would strengthen the entire online ecosystem — from e-commerce to health care, employment, supply chains, and more.”
The recommendations include reducing dependency on passwords to provide more intuitive and secure authentication; eliminating identity proofing solutions that are solely knowledge-based; changing the use of Social Security numbers; improving government support for validating identity attributes and verifying identity claims; and enhancing privacy through digital identity.
The report outlines six objectives for improving digital identity: strengthening and sustaining the security and privacy of digital services; providing digital identity with a safety net; enabling convenient access to digital services; enabling wide availability of authoritative attribute sources; providing transparency and choice; and increasing digital literacy and awareness.