Monetisation of personal information: technology, policies and regulatory framework
Data monetization can be described as a process of transforming data objects into commodities others will be prepared to pay a premium for (Perler, 2012). This concept of monetisation is rooted in the value placed on minerals like gold and diamonds, because of their intrinsic values. Thus, things possessing no intrinsic value or intrinsically worthless items could also be monetised or transformed into a legitimate money making venture, provided the holder is capable of providing the services others want, or if the holder of such information can add value to such information. Effective management of personal identity information is making it increasingly possible to track and trace individuals’ preferences and social connections. Thus, personal information can plays a pivotal role in facilitating contemporary business transactions and social interactions, if the factors that account for its optimal take-off are properly addressed. This study focuses on understanding major technological and regulator imperatives in the monetisation of personal identity information stored by government agencies.
The 2012 global information technology report (Dutta & Bilbao-Osorio, 2012) rated Ghana and many African countries at the lowest in all the indices. For instance Ghana was ranked 97th out of the 142 countries covered whilst the top 20 positions were all occupied by either European or OECD countries. Credential Issuers in Ghana and many developing economies (acting as identity providers1) implement Identity Management Systems (IDMS) primarily to facilitate the discharge of their primary constitutional obligation – e.g. voters’ identity cards are used for electoral purposes. Besides these primary functions, personal identity information
collected and stored by such government agencies are usually made redundant. For instance banks and even hospitals are currently unable to verify in real time, the identity credentials presented by customers and patients. In spite of the data
The 2012 global information technology report (Dutta & Bilbao-Osorio, 2012) rated Ghana and many African countries at the lowest in all the indices. For instance Ghana was ranked 97th out of the 142 countries covered whilst the top 20 positions were all occupied by either European or OECD countries. Credential Issuers in Ghana and many developing economies (acting as identity providers1) implement Identity Management Systems (IDMS) primarily to facilitate the discharge of their primary constitutional obligation – e.g. voters’ identity cards are used for electoral purposes. Besides these primary functions, personal identity information
collected and stored by such government agencies are usually made redundant. For instance banks and even hospitals are currently unable to verify in real time, the identity credentials presented by customers and patients. In spite of the data