Accurately predicting the future requires an ability to build complex projection models based on previous trends. Where data protection is concerned, no such models are necessary, as it’s reasonable to assume two things will remain true for many years to come.
The future will include aggressive and ongoing personal data collection.
It’s hard to imagine data collection becoming even more pervasive than current day. Past trends, however, suggest otherwise. As technologies and services evolve, they become increasingly reliant on end-user data to function properly.
Case in point: virtual reality (VR). In the near future, avatars — the digital version of users — will almost perfectly mirror how people look, walk, and jump. The technology effectively scans entire physical beings into a digital environment, which is a massive amount of data that needs to be stored somewhere, by someone (hint: that someone will not be the consumer). As technologies like VR become more prevalent, so too will their database of end-user behaviors and metrics.
The future will not include a 100% guarantee of the security of that data.
Over the last several years, security solutions have become smarter and more effective. Many developers now implement automated systems like artificial intelligence (advanced computers) and machine learning (systems that learn from data and evolve accordingly).
The idea behind both is to detect and respond to threats faster than humans.
Unfortunately, even as security technologies improve, two vital factors work against them.
- Technology can and will fail
- Cybercriminals also evolve and will leverage advanced technologies
Those factors highlight a key concept: You are the future of data protection. Technology might help, but it will always fall behind criminal tactics, which are designed to remove technology from the equation (such as social engineering). As always, security and privacy will ultimately be determined by the individuals who stay alert, identify threats, and report them immediately.
Article retrieved from Digital Privacy Fundamentals by The Security Awareness Company – KnowBe4, Inc. (2023)