Privacy and biometrics brought into sharp focus in connect:ID

The future of how biometric technologies will interact with everything from payments to health wearables and government services has been raised by identity experts at the connect:ID 2016 event in Washington DC.In a humorous and enlightening keynote speech on Wednesday, Jules Polonetsky, CEO and Executive Director, Future of Privacy Forum, outlined some of the misunderstandings among privacy advocates – and the wider public – over the technology's implications.Calling for greater transparency on all sides, Polonetsky said that “privacy doesn't need to be creepy”.”Social norms are challenged by new technology”, he said, outlining that there was a privacy outcry when Kodak cameras were introduced more than 100 years ago.Asking for better coordination, he revealed some of the misconceptions surrounding biometrics.Speaking on privacy protection a day earlier, biometrics and the iOT, Amy Wolverton, Vice President, Government Affairs and Public Policy, HTC, outlined key trends such as the increasing prevalence of sensors impacting on more aspects of our lives.”No matter where you go and what you do, devices are collecting your data,” she said,The changes are both evolutionary and revolutionary, said Brian Dewitt, Vice President, Division Counsel,Qualcomm, underlining the importance of careful management of growth.Caitlin Newark, Senior Consultant, Cyber,SIGINT, & Identity Discovery (CS&ID), Novetta,added that it is important to understand the minute detail of what is being collected.In a separate session that provided an equally valuable insight into the future intersection between biometrics and government identity, Gilad Rosner, Founder, Internet of Things PrivacyForum, enlightened the audience on the future importance of “unlinkability” and “unobservability”.Rosner outlined a future of digital identity where personas are strictly compartmentalised.Meanwhile, Deputy Director, NSTIC, National Institute of Standards and Technology. Mike Garcia gave excellent insight into today's digitally connected world.”We think of the government as a purveyor of identity, yet it isnt an expert on it,” said Garcia. “Not all identity solutions for the government need to have been developed by the government.”Further details of the event's conference insights will be featured in upcoming articles.

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