According to the RAE identity is the set of one's own traits of an individual or a community that characterizes them compared to others.
These traits can be very disparate elements that, fundamentally, we can group into two categories: subjective and objective.
Those associated with the perception of our environment about us would be subjective traits: qualifiers related to our physical appearance, temperament and character, oral and body expression, our smell, tastes, sexual orientation, religious beliefs, ideology, etc. In this category we could include all those traits that, in isolation, could describe us, but also other people.
On the other hand, they would be objective traits those that belong to us and unequivocally identify. Traits that we do not share with any other person. These would be, for example, our genetic information, image and voice, DNI number, our name along with our date of birth or a combination of subjective traits that leave no room for doubt about our identity.
Legally, all these features fall within the concept of personal information. Our identity is the result of the entire set of personal data that can be derived from us. However, some personal data, due to its nature or its combination with a few other data, is sufficient to create our identity and unequivocally differentiate us from others.
Let's imagine a puzzle of the Eiffel Tower. Most of the puzzle will be pieces with pieces of sky, but others will correspond to the structure of the tower. With a few of these pieces, anyone could identify that the puzzle represents the Eiffel Tower. The same goes for our identity.
Risks in the digital space:
By participating in digital environments our identity expands. Every time we use connected devices we leave a fingerprint, breadcrumbs that tell where we come from, where we are and, probably, where we will go.
Aware of its risks, the group of experts that is preparing the Digital Bill of Rights project has recognized the right to identity in the digital environment. This right includes the prohibition of it being altered, controlled or manipulated by third parties against the will of the person. A forecast that, despite not having a regulatory nature, is of great interest and that we will surely see evolve normatively and jurisprudentially in the coming years.
However, as often happens in the technology sector, the evolution of this right will be closely linked to market solutions (eg Microsoft Decentralized Identity) and the reception of these by users, which generally depends on their usability.
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