With the introduction of Web 2.0, the way internet users are communicating with other users has changed dramatically. The advancement of digital communication platforms has provided an opportunity for individuals and organizations to form their own digital identities (Huang-Horowitz & Freberg, 2016). With these advances, new issues and challenges have emerged for individuals and organizations.
For every website a user interacts with, a different identity is constructed, as each site sees users’ characteristics differently. For example, eBay has established an identity for users based on the products they purchase. Finance has developed a different identity for a user based on the stocks they own or are following (Internet Society, 2019).
Today’s online platforms have adopted technologies that build profiles of customers to offer product recommendations and keep personal histories that can be long-lived and extremely detailed. Data sharing between these web-based businesses also affects a user’s online identity and privacy. Through data sharing, a service provider can link divisions of personal data to a mass of data users may have thought was confined to another persona or context. While some Internet users appreciate the convenience those digital identities afford, others worry about how much of their personal information is stored and how this information is distributed (Internet Society, 2019).
When creating an online identity within an organization, there are communication policies to abide by which instruct what to share and what needs to be kept private. Creating personal digital identities can be much trickier, and considerations need to be made regarding how users want to be perceived, who might see the content.
Once information is posted online, it could potentially remain there forever. Many people are nervous about sharing personal information online, yet many do it without thought by posting on social media daily (Fineman, 2014). Everyday users leave behind hundreds of digital traces through the use of a computer, mobile phone, and other digital devices. Bits of information about a user is created, stored, and collected. When these digital traces are combined to create stories about the user, they become a digital shadow. (Myshadow.org, 2019)These can give others tremendous insight into an individual’s life, and they can be misinterpreted.
References
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Fineman, M. (2014, November 24). What we post online is forever, and we need a reminder [Blog post]. Retrieved from https://www.inc.com/meredith-fineman/what-we-post-online-is-forever-and-we-need-a-reminder.html
Huang-Horowitz, N. C. & Freberg, K. (2016) Bridging organizational identity and reputation messages online: a conceptual model. Corporate Communications: An International Journal, Vol. 21(2). pp.195-212. https://doi-org.ezproxy.csu.edu.au/10.1108/CCIJ-06-2014-0034
Internet Society. (2019). Online identity — an overview training module. Retrieved from https://www.internetsociety.org/wpcontent/uploads/tutorials/online_identity_overview/story_content/external_files/Overview%20Online%20Identity.pdf
Myshadow.org. (2019). Me and my Shadow. Retrieved from https://myshadow.org/
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