Digital identity is more than just a login box! Eve bridges the gap between this tech field and public awareness, helping individuals, enterprises and business owners enhance their digital security, privacy, and online experiences so that together, we can build a healthy, sustainable digital humanity. Attending the SXSW Conference? Join us!

What do the first 10 minutes of your morning look like?

Chances are high – 71%! – that your waking routine includes checking all the feeds on your phone.

Emails, texts, socials, news… Your attention might be captured by cat pics, or weather calamities, or the timing of your next Amazon delivery. If you’re like me, you can barely tear yourself away from the endless stream in order to turn to more IRL pursuits, like feeding the dog.

The Internet’s hidden cardiovascular system

The apps and websites you visit offer a deal that is nonnegotiable. Their services only work if they know who you are, to some degree of specificity.

One of the key technologies that makes this happen is known as identity and access management (IAM, if you’re in the biz), or simply digital identity.

You might think of it as the login box that demands your username and password.

The systems that identify us are critical for security and fraud protection, have a major impact on how we exercise our digital privacy rights, and can dramatically affect our online experiences.

I can’t believe I’m gonna have to log into things for the rest of my life

But it doesn’t mean that any human being actually asked for any of this infrastructure.

Whether it’s at work or at home, our digital selves operate in a highly connected world. Just to name a few…

• There are smart medical devices such as biosensors that your doctor might prescribe.
• Then there are cars (including ones that drive around in circles all by themselves), toll roads, and parking garages that make up an urban mobilitylandscape.
• And there are digital wallets that hold your now-digital credit cards, boarding passes, hotel room keys, and concert tickets.

Increasingly, traditional login experiences are changing and even going away. When’s the last time you had to actually “log in” to your Amazon app? Have you been offered a “passkey” to use with your Target account yet?

You’d think this means we’re able to be more anonymous when we feel like it. Unfortunately not.

What role should identity have in a healthy, sustainable version of digital humanity?

From my perspective as a longtime identity technologist and innovator, at SXSW I’ll be explaining how things work today, and taking on some of the toughest challenges faced by individuals – and by businesses, including:

• What the deepfake era has done to 100% remote (example: Zoom) person-to-person and company-to-person interactions, and how we can become secure and free of fraud
• The autonomy, privacy, and safety challenges we face by being so “well known” everywhere we travel on the Internet, and what to do about them
• Better ways to handle death and the digital estate that loved ones leave behind, when it comes to online accounts and other critical data
• What building digital relationships should look like in the future and what you can do about it
• …and more

If you have thoughts on what’s important for doing right by our digital selves, or questions on how things work, drop them in the comments and I’ll do my best to address them.

I’m looking forward to seeing you in Austin!

‍