Money in a Cashless World

While in developed countries money has been digital for some time, for the rest of the world cash is still the undisputed king.

Globally 85 per cent of consumer transactions are done with cold hard cash, whereas in Australia we’ve seen cash transactions drop as low as 14 per cent. So, with the ever-increasing adoption of mobile technologies, will we see the end of traditional paper money?

The Future of Buying and Selling

Ali Mohammad Al Khouri, Director General of the Emirates Identity Authority presented a paper at the Middle East Retail Forum.  The title of the paper was “The impact of ID Management Infrastructure on the Commerce Sector”.  In it he stresses the security advantages of a biometrically verified ID.  It is not to hard to see that in the future it will be necessary to be a part of the biometric database in order to buy or sell anything.

In our last post here on "News of the Beast" we discussed how the UN was going to tap the experience and knowledge of the UAE's Emirates Identity Authority for a global system of biometric identification.  This time we see more of what Emirates ID is planning for future and this gives us a good idea of where the rest of the world will be going as well.  It's about buying and selling.

UAE's Emirates ID projects pave way for future eCommerce economy

Ali Mohammad Al Khouri, Director General of the Emirates Identity Authority, has stressed that the strategic projects being developed by the Authority fall in line with the UAE vision to lay the foundations of a secure modern digital economy in the country and keep pace with the accelerated transformation witnessed by businesses and industries around the world.

Dr. Al Khouri underscored that the infrastructure of digital identity plays a fundamental role in combating identity theft crimes which are threatening the global eCommerce market whose value is estimated at $2 trillion. He considered that development of trusted standard mechanisms for online identity verification should enhance customers’ trust in the modern “virtual” economic environments and double fold the value of eCommerce market.

In his paper presented at the Middle East Retail Forum in Dubai, Dr. Al Khouri said that the advanced identity verification mechanisms provided by Emirates ID have the potential to develop eCommerce in the UAE and make a quantum leap in the service sector at government and private levels. This should in turn boost the sustainable development in the UAE and enhance its global competitiveness.

In the paper entitled “The impact of ID Management Infrastructure on the Commerce Sector”, Dr. Al Khouri stated that the infrastructure developed by Emirates ID to verify and authenticate personal identity in the UAE should contribute in facilitating transformation into secure electronic environments and eliminate the challenges related to identity verification and authentication.

During the two-day forum, Dr. Al Khouri pointed to the growing challenges related to security of commercial transactions in light of statistics showing a rise in identity fraud and theft worldwide, particularly in the last two years.

He underlined the international report’s findings that the biggest challenge facing the business sector globally is to control fraud and verify customers’ identities, which necessitates setting up a mechanism for validating personal identity, noting that the UAE has gone far on the road of securing and boosting eTransactions through the advanced features of the ID card and the digital authentication centre which allows online instant validation of authenticity and reliability of the data embedded in the ID card.

Dr. Al Khouri highlighted that, more than ever, the rapid changes taking place in the contemporary world led to restructuring business and industry sectors, considering that these changes have remarkably revolutionised consumers’ behaviour making them more reliable on digital channels than traditional ones amid the unprecedented prevalence of internet, smart devices and social media networks.

http://www.albawaba.com/business/uae-id-530018

UN-Emirates Cooperate on Global ID

The United Arab Emirates (UAE) has the world's largest biometric database as part of its Emirates ID project.  Now the United Nations is coming to the UAE for its expertise in setting up a global biometric database. The apparent goal of the UN is to register every human on the face of the planet.

It’s Eida-UN deal in digital ID realm

ABU DHABI: The Emirates Identity Authority (Eida) and the United Nations have signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) aimed at bolstering co-operation to develop the infrastructure of the Authority’s digital identity projects. It also aims at benefiting from the UAE’s experience in developing advanced identity programmes globally.

Under the MoU, Eida and the UN agreed to implement joint initiatives and projects in the field of sustainable development and boost knowledge society on the global level through organising international conferences and workshops and conducting specialised researches.

The MoU was signed on Thursday at the UN headquarters in New York in the presence of Dr. Eng. Ali Mohamed Al Khouri, Director-General of Eida and Vincenzo Aquaro, Chief of e-Government Branch of the Division for Public Administration and Development Management (DPADM) of the United Nations Department of Economic and Social Affairs (Undesa).

In his paper presented on the sidelines of the MoU signing, Dr Al Khouri reiterated the UAE’s prudent leadership’s quest to upgrade efficiency of its government sector and adopt the culture of excellence, pioneering and continuous development in order to boost the UAE’s global position.

He said that the UAE is determined to be one of the best countries in the world according to the UAE Vision 2021 and Abu Dhabi Economic Vision 2030.

Dr Al Khouri said that the UAE government has set up a comprehensive and integrated vision aimed to develop the living and service systems of both Emiratis and residents.

It is diligently working to establish a sustainable development environment at all levels with people’s happiness and public welfare as its utmost priorities.

He underscored Eida’s keenness to represent the UAE in different international events and increase awareness of its successive achievements and to cooperate with various leading UN organisations in the field of advanced identity, government work development and scientific research.

The aim is to build a knowledge-based society and economy in the UAE which will contribute in reinforcing the UAE’s competitiveness and leadership in order to become ‘Number 1’ in all fields.

Dr Al Khouri gave a brief on Emirates ID Strategic Plan 2010-2013 and its new Plan 2014-2016, highlighting a number of projects carried out by the Authority particularly the ‘Digital Identity’ and ‘e-Link’ with government entities.

He explained the role the Population Register System plays in supporting decision making. Meanwhile, UN officials commended the UAE’s vision and praised its leadership’s boundless ambitions to develop the quality of living of its people and its quest to pioneer globally in all fields and in the eGovernment Index.

http://www.khaleejtimes.com/kt-article-display-1.asp?xfile=data/nationgeneral/2013/October/nationgeneral_October217.xml&section=nationgeneral

Going Global | Homeland Security top officer to work on UN’s new global Internet rules

The second-in-command at the US Department of Homeland Security is stepping down as deputy secretary in order to sign-on for a role with the United Nations. But as Jane Holl Lute changes venues, will she change the world’s Internet as well?

Lute confirmed to Reuters this week that she will offer the DHS her official resignation in the coming days and will exit the third-largest agency in the federal government to join the ranks of the UN. There, she says an interview published on Tuesday, she will pursue a role in international Internet affairs.

But as Lute leaves the DHS and takes up a job with a more global reach, she could be bringing with her an ideology about the Internet that doesn’t sit well with some: during her tenure in the Obama administration, Lute touted the president’s attempts to strengthening information sharing between the federal government and the private sector.