Understanding the Cultural Aspects of Digital Identity with Kalev Pihl, SK ID Solutions – Podcast Episode 93

Let's talk about digital identity with Kalev Pihl, CEO of SK ID Solutions. In episode 93, Oscar is joined by Kalev Pihl, to answer ‘What are the cultural aspects of digital identity?’  They delve into the role of culture in shaping digital identity and how digital identity is being treated as a detached technology, without considering cultural differences. Alongside discussing the challenges in recognising these cultural aspects, as well as sharing some of the solutions at have successfully prioritised the human aspects of digital identity. [Transcript below] "We have to be designing mindfully those digital identity solutions for a specific culture, and I think that this is a value in the world." Kalev has worked with digital identity over 25 years. Started with the topic in governmental side preparing Estonia for electronic identity on national identity card. Has since worked in financial sector and in Microsoft. Last 15 years he has been CEO of SK ID Solutions – trust service provider that serves digital identities in Estonia, Latvia and Lithuania. Connect with Kalev on LinkedIn. We’ll be continuing this conversation on Twitter using #LTADI – join us @ubisecure! Go to @Ubisecure on YouTube to watch the video transcript for episode 93. Podcast transcript Let’s Talk About Digital Identity, the podcast connecting identity and business. I am your host, Oscar Santolalla. Oscar Santolalla: Hello and thank you for joining a new episode over Let’s Talk About Digital Identity. What are the cultural aspects of digital identity? So that's definitely a good question and very relevant questions and this is one of the questions that our guest today is going to answer. Our guest today is Kalev Pihl. He has worked with digital identity over 25 years. He started with a topic in governmental side, preparing Estonia for electronic identity, or national identity cards. Since then, Kalev has worked in the financial sector and in Microsoft. During the last 15 years, he has been the CEO of SK ID Solutions, a trust service provider that serves digital identities in Estonia, Latvia, and Lithuania. Hello, Kalev. Kalev Pihl: Hi, Oscar. Oscar: It's nice talking with you, Kalev. Kalev: It's been a while. Oscar: Yes, Kalev. So, let's talk about digital identity. And the first thing we want to hear from our guest is something about yourself and especially your journey to this world of digital identity. Kalev: I think of the journey to digital identity for me went through this very physical, governmentally controlled national identity. So that was my starting point. And I guess that's where I'm a bit stuck with my mindset as well, sometimes. And this is my limit. But that's how it started. So, it started from the idea that in the world of physical human beings. Governments tend to have this role in society to name, number and identify the residents, they treat as their residents of the country, we are speaking about. And whilst we have probably different other nicknames in different other societies. And somehow, globally, these governmental-issued identities have become the norm of; How do we know each other across the world. How do we identify the people whom we don't know beforehand. So, I think from that angle, I've stuck with the idea that governments have the role of naming and identifying who we are. Oscar: Yeah, indeed. I think it’s – I mean, in my view, probably in the constitution in most countries, I'm not a lawyer, but I'm sure it's written in some of the laws. So that's one of the functions of the government. And yeah, and that has been translated in our very, let's say, not very recent time. But talking, especially in the last maybe 20 years that we have such digital identifications, like Estonia is pioneering and in a few other countries as well. It's pretty digital, pretty well-established. Kalev: Yeah. I think that the – for the beginning of any country or state in the physical world,...