Privacy technology: whats next?

The evolution of data-privacy technology in the age of automation

 Costly data breaches. Ongoing security issues. Personalization of online services. Intrusive advertising tactics. Sharing of consumer data. Consumers are raising red flags about how today’s businesses are using and protecting their personal data and their concerns are rapidly driving the issue of consumer data privacy up the boardroom agenda. Consumers are not just concerned about data protection — they want greater control of access to their personal data and how it is ultimately used by businesses. Regulators are also paying close attention and continue to enact stringent laws aimed at ‘bad’ data gathering and sharing practices.

KPMG’s Me, my life, my wallet study found that 55 percent of consumers cited data protection as their primary expectation of companies, with 47 percent also saying they expect companies to never sell or share their personal data.

At the same time, trust in businesses is suffering among dubious consumers. KPMG’s The new imperative for corporate data responsibility 2 report found that 68 percent of consumers surveyed do not trust businesses to ethically sell their personal data. Fifty percent of consumers also said they do not wholly trust businesses to protect their data.

Ongoing consumer trends — from ubiquitous smartphones and social media channels to the massive shift to online shopping, personalized customer experiences, and more — are driving an explosion of consumer data. Fast-emerging technologies such as 5G, the Internet of Things (IoT), and artificial intelligence, meanwhile, are poised to dramatically heighten both connectivity and the endless data wave — along with the complexity of data security and privacy protection.

Data privacy technology will need to mature quickly to effectively manage today’s endlessly expanding data universe. In this report, we examine where data-privacy technology and management are going — and need to go — to effectively respond to a complex and fast-evolving environment.