User Centric Identity Management: An Oxymoron or the Key to Getting Identity Management Right?

The concept of identity management is very personal in nature. However, still while designing an identity management system, the last thing to be paid attention to is an individual. This paper seeks to set the anomaly right. It proposes to put the user at the center while designing a system for managing identity. It looks to reinforce that the organization, be private or government, should look into the wishes and interests of the people whose identity is being managed. It further states that by not doing so, these organizations are exposing themselves to various risks that have not been thought about earlier. These losses and risks include loss of trust, loss of financial nature and increased susceptibility to the risk which are meant to be mitigated in the first place. It also attempts to understand the role of internet in changing the goals of identity management. It claims that internet has change the entire game play. According to this paper, with the advent of internet, users are being overburdened with choices. Then, the paper proceeds to discuss the concept of great 'Risk shift'. This concept states that the organizations are transferring their risks on to the individuals. There is also an urgent need to properly manage the gigantic volume of peripheral data collected through the digital footprints.