Security, Trust, Identity and Privacy

The increased use of the Internet and other information and communication technologies means that more and more transactions are being carried out remotely online.

Whereas in the past, relationships and a history of interaction provided a sense of surety, the e-ification of business has changed markets into a world-wide bazaar where geography/locality is becoming less of a factor for most transactions.

These two shifts mean that the traditional face-to-face business transaction is being seriously challenged by the cheaper, faster, online option. Yet the more personal, traditional transactions remain important for some aspects of financial and other activities.

The challenge for businesses is how to deliver the cheaper and more impersonal online transactions, while retaining a mix of channels and modes of communications. This is so that customers feel a sense of trust, security, privacy and control of identity in their transactions. The Project’s first and second streams will build two pieces of infrastructure that have already been identified as being needed to facilitate:

- DRM to operate in a group oriented manner as will be needed for mobile devices;

- Personal Rights Management; the ability for people to control how far their personal information is disseminated and by whom it is viewed.

The Project’s third and fourth streams will explore the relationship between security, trust, identity, and privacy within the context of online financial transactions. They will also suggest actions businesses can take to enhance these four factors so that e-commerce and m-commerce find greater acceptance within the general public.

Research Stream: Banking, personal communication and financial decision making

We will examine how technology changes the way families, couples and singles receive financial information, make financial decisions and manage their money. This analysis will take into account family composition, gender and the use of information and communication technologies. It will also identify how these factors affect issues of trust, privacy, identity, and security.

This research will provide up-to-date data that will give the customer’s perspective across different life stages. It will connect the changing nature of money resulting from new technologies with changing relationships within the family and household. This research will complement official data on the use of payment instruments and channels. It will also add a user and activity dimension to banking data on customer segments and new technologies.

We will translate this understanding of customers into designs for more effective lifelong services for existing and potential customers.

Research Stream: Identity management and the impact of changing roles in E-commerce and M-commerce

The Internet is changing the way we interact with others in both our business and personal spheres. E-Commerce and m-Commerce are becoming mainstream as a result of the increased use of the Internet and wireless by individuals, business and government. Electronic commerce has developed beyond buying and selling of goods electronically. It is now leading to new online intermediaries such as aggregators of information like Google, peer-to-peer sites which allow sharing between individuals without the need for commercial service providers, and new on-line payment mechanisms such as PayPal. New areas are being handled electronically, such as conveyancing and health records, and more individuals are using mobile technology to undertake business and personal interactions. These new intermediaries are expected to add value through providing choice to users and through increased use of acceptance technology as a way to conduct business.

The shift to e-Commerce/m-Commerce will happen gradually since there is likely to be resistance from users and providers alike due to a lack of confidence in the systems that ensure security, trust, privacy, identity and privacy with identity management and associated privacy issues being the key attributes.

Research is needed to fully understand the impact on participants of new areas being managed electronically and on the expectations and needs of individuals as consumers. The objectives of this stream are therefore to concentrate on understanding, through case studies, surveys and interviews, the new intermediary roles emerging from the introduction of areas being handled electronically and on understanding and assessing the needs, concerns and expectations of individuals who are the consumers and customers affected by the expansion to the electronic environment, particularly in the area of identity management.