Digital Trust: Supporting Individual Agency W H I T E P A P E RF E B R U A R Y 2 0 2 4In collaboration with AccentureImages: Getty Images, UnsplashDisclaimer This document is published by the World Economic Forum as a contribution to a project, insight area or interaction. The findings, interpretations and conclusions expressed herein are a result of a collaborative process facilitated and endorsed by the World Economic Forum but whose results do not necessarily represent the views of the World Economic Forum, nor the entirety of its Members, Partners or other stakeholders.© 2024 World Economic Forum. All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced or transmitted in any form or by any means, including photocopying and recording, or by any information storage and retrieval system.ContentsForeword 3Executive summary 4Introduction 51 Transparency by design: The responsibility to illuminate choices 72 Privacy by design: Safeguarding user privacy 103 Redressability: Prevention, engagement, oversight 12Conclusion 14Appendix 15Contributors 18Endnotes 19Digital Trust: Supporting Individual Agency2ForewordAt the 2024 World Economic Forum Annual Meeting in Davos, stakeholders convened under the meeting’s theme of Rebuilding Trust. At that meeting, participants continued to endorse the Forum’s guidance that trust in technology – especially new and emerging technologies like artificial intelligence (AI) – must be earned through responsible decision-making while emphasizing that individuals and society have agency over the future of technology.1At the Forum, the Centre for the Fourth Industrial Revolution helps stakeholders harness the full potential of technological progress for the equitable and human-centred transformation of industries, economies and societies. With thematic areas ranging from AI to immersive technologies and quantum technologies to space, improving governance is a top priority. To improve governance across technological domains, the Forum launched the Digital Trust initiative in 2021 to establish a global consensus among key stakeholders regarding what digital trust means and what measurable steps can be taken to improve the trustworthiness of digital technologies.Specifically, the Forum’s Digital Trust Initiative, through a multistakeholder approach, has defined Digital Trust as “individuals’ expectation that digital technologies and services – and the organizations providing them – will protect all stakeholders’ interests and uphold societal expectations and values.”2 This definition has informed the publication of a decision-making framework, high-level implementation roadmap3 and guidance on pre-implementation steps4 and how to measure digital trust5 for organizations’ leaders. This document builds on these groundbreaking publications, ensuring individuals are at the centre of technology. It further guides business and governmen...
