By: Didier Serra, EVP, Sales & Marketing, SecureKey 
Across the globe, nations have the responsibility to stay on top of trends that affect consumers. It’s each nation’s responsibility to continuously innovate and create strategies across infrastructure, transportation, health and education (to name a few) that better the lives of its citizens.
Regardless of location, technology has emerged as the most common example in which citizens expect a high level of innovation. From earth-to-space video calls to artificially intelligent entities interchanging millions of terabytes of data per second, technology innovation is taking place at a pace never seen before.
Taking this into consideration, countries across the globe have recognized the importance of cybersecurity. Organizations across the public and private sector are developing identity-based solutions and cybersecurity strategies to ensure consumers are protected from data breaches and small-to large-scale hacks.
I’m proud to say that Canada is doing well in protecting Canadian consumers’ security online. Canada’s first National Cyber Security Strategy[1] allocated $431.5 million dollars over 10 years to secure government systems, form partnerships to secure vital cyber systems outside the federal government and help Canadians to be more secure online. More recently, the 2018 budget has made a substantial investment in cybersecurity, totaling more than $500 million dollars over five years. While Canada is investing a lot of effort and resources to keep consumers safe, it is also our responsibility to take care of digital identity and learn how to better protect our information online.
Next week, we’re excited to take part in the Identity & Cybersecurity Innovation World and Government ID World conferences, taking place in Marseille, France, alongside representatives from Belgium, Czech Republic, Estonia, France, Germany, Italy, India, Netherlands, Norway, Portugal, Serbia, Spain, UK, Ukraine and the U.S. There, I will be giving a presentation on digital identity networks, as well as participating on a panel, where myself and fellow panelists will get into the great “privacy or security” debate and talk about CCTV, cyberwars, politics and GDPR. Together, we will share the advances our countries have achieved in enhancing cybersecurity, building customer trust and boosting digital transformation.
I’m proud to represent Canada and bring SecureKey’s experience to the table, sharing how we are working with leading organizations across a number of industries to create Verified.Me, a blockchain-based digital identity network that will simplify online verification processes in a privacy-enhanced, secure and safe way. The network will put consumers back in control of their own identities and allow them to selectively share their information.
We recognize that digital identity is in a state that demands immediate change; there are current flaws in how personal information is stored and used today, resulting in the potential for sensitive information falling into the wrong hands. By working with these leading organizations and utilizing blockchain technology, we aim to set a new standard for what secure online presence is – to ensure that consumers can share their personal information where and when they want, with total peace of mind.
At the conferences, we look forward to educating the audience on what a digital identity network is capable of and how it will make identity verification stronger, make the exchange of data more efficient and secure and, most importantly, let consumers have total control of their digital identities.
If you are interested in learning more about how other countries are innovating in digital identity and cybersecurity, join the conferences’ social conversation on Twitter via @IDCyberSecurity and @GovIDW from September 24 to 26, using the hashtag #SmartSecurityWeek. I hope to see you during my sessions on Monday, September 24th and Tuesday, September 25th. More information about the conferences can also be found here:
[1]Public Safety Canada. National Cyber Security Strategy: Canada’s Vision for Security and Prosperity in the Digital Age. 2018. https://www.publicsafety.gc.ca/cnt/rsrcs/pblctns/ntnl-cbr-scrt-strtg/ntnl-cbr-scrt-strtg-en.pdf