3529: How Ping Identity Sees the Next Chapter of Digital Identity

Dec 23, 2025

Join Alex Laurie, Go-to CTO at Ping Identity, as he dives into the evolving landscape of digital identity. He highlights the growing concerns around online verification, emphasizing how the UK's centralized model is out of sync with global standards. Expect discussions on the practical issues like identity theft and privacy invasion, alongside the benefits of decentralized identity. Alex also warns about the risks posed by AI in verification systems, advocating for a framework built on continuous verification and user control.

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INSIGHT

Public Risk Awareness Has Leveled Up

Public awareness of breaches and AI-driven threats sharply raised identity concerns in 2025.
These shifts make citizens more wary of large centralized identity initiatives like the BRIT card.

ADVICE

Design National ID Around Standards And Education

Do design government identity schemes using verifiable credentials and established standards.
Do invest heavily in public education so non-technical citizens understand control and privacy benefits.

ANECDOTE

Estonia Example And The Passport Photo Copy

Neil noted Estonia's transparent health-data model where citizens can see who accessed their records.
Alex used the hotel/passport example to show why people dislike unnecessary data collection.

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What does it actually mean to prove who we are online in 2025, and why does it still feel so fragile?

In this episode of Tech Talks Daily, I sit down with Alex Laurie from Ping Identity to talk about why digital identity has reached a real moment of tension in the UK.

As more of our lives move online, from banking and healthcare to social platforms and government services, the gap between how identity should work and how it actually works keeps widening.

Alex shares why the UK now feels out of step with other regions when it comes to online identity schemes, and how heavy reliance on centralized models is slowing adoption while weakening public trust.

We spend time unpacking the practical consequences of today's verification systems. Age checks are regularly bypassed, fraud continues to grow, and users are often asked to hand over far more personal data than feels reasonable just to access everyday services.

At the same time, public pressure around online safety is rising fast. That creates an uncomfortable push and pull between tighter controls and the expectation of fast, low-friction access.

Alex makes the case that this tension exists because the underlying approach is flawed, and that proving something simple, like age, should never require revealing an entire digital identity.

From there, the conversation turns to decentralized identity and why it is gaining momentum globally. Instead of placing sensitive data into large centralized databases, decentralized models allow individuals to hold and present verified credentials on their own terms.

For me, this reframes digital identity as a right rather than a feature, and opens the door to systems that feel more privacy-aware, inclusive, and resilient. We also explore how agentic AI could play a role here, helping people manage, present, and protect their credentials intelligently without adding complexity or new risks.

With fresh consumer research from Ping Identity informing the discussion, this episode looks closely at where trust, privacy, and identity are heading next, and why the choices made now will shape how we prove who we are online for years to come. Are we finally ready to rethink digital identity, and if so, what does that mean for all of us?