On the Ontology of Digital Identification

Existing technical and legal definitions of identification and closely related privacy concepts show a confused and often circular semantics, in particular when applied to a digital environment. We examine the ontology of digital identification in the wider context of privacy. We begin with a formal definition of the ‘identical’ relation between 2 nyms and from this we derive a quantifiable notion of identification based on linkability and its opposite, anonymity. We base our logical model on a 3 layered semantic model theory. The results of this modeling show the context dependence of identification. Identification has meaning only in relation to a set of individuals known as the anonymity set, and an existing knowledge base of facts about these individuals.