Bottom Line Up Front: Digital Footprints and Digital Dust are both terms used to describe the trail of data and information that people leave behind when they use digital devices and services. However, there are some key differences between the two concepts. Both digital footprints and digital dust feed into the Digital Exhaust Ecosystem which is a complex network of individuals, organizations, and technologies that interact with each other to generate, collect, store, process, analyze, and use these data points. This data ecosystem has different components that interact with each other in complex ways to produce outcomes that directly impact our privacy and can be positive or negative. This ecosystem is increasingly serving as a key resource used by threat actors to harm U.S. National interests.
Digital Footprints Versus Digital Dust
Digital Footprints and Digital Dust are both terms used to describe the trail of data and information that people leave behind when they use digital devices and services. However, there are some key differences between the two concepts.
A digital footprint is the permanent record of all the digital interactions and activities that a person has engaged in.
This includes things like social media posts, online shopping, email communications, and more.
The digital footprint is considered to be a conscious, intentional, and visible activity that can be traced back to an individual.
The digital footprint can have long-lasting effects on a person’s reputation, online identity and can be used to target advertising towards an individual.
Digital dust refers to the data and information that people inadvertently leave behind while using digital devices and services.
This data is often collected by third-party companies, such as device manufacturers, advertisers, and data brokers, and can include information such as search history, browsing activity, and location data.
Digital dust is often invisible to the user, and they may not be aware that they are generating this data or how it is being used.
Digital Dust And Digital Exhaust Are Not The Same
Overall, the main difference between a digital footprint and digital dust is the first represents a deliberate and conscious activity and is often a conscious and intentional activity that can have a direct impact on a person’s online identity and reputation, whereas the second is generated passively and involuntarily as a by-product of using digital devices and services. However, both concepts are important to understand when it comes to better understanding the Digital Exhaust Ecosystem.
While the terms digital dust and digital exhaust are both terms used to describe the trail of data and information that people leave behind when they use digital devices and services. Overall, the main difference between digital dust and digital exhaust is that the former is generated passively and involuntarily as a by-product of using digital devices and services, while the latter is generated by the technology itself.
The Digital Exhaust Ecosystem
The Digital Exhaust Ecosystem goes beyond a user’s digital footprint or inadvertent digital dust as it includes content that has been created not only by the individual, but also by others by means such as open sources, telemetry, data scraping, use of cookies, meta data sharing, etc.
The Digital Exhaust Ecosystem can be used for marketing purposes, as well as nefarious purposes and creates a much greater in-depth profile about the data subject than a digital footprint and digital dust because of the wider reach of data points.
What exists in this vast ecosystem is a complex network of individuals, organizations, and technologies that interact with each other to generate, collect, store, process, analyze, and use data. Similar to a natural ecosystem, a data ecosystem has different components that interact with each other in complex ways to produce outcomes that can be positive or negative.
Components of the Digital Exhaust Ecosystem include data sources (such as sensors, mobile devices, and social media platforms), data collectors and aggregators (such as data brokers and data warehouses), data processors (such as data scientists and machine learning algorithms), and data users (such as businesses, government agencies, and individuals).
This includes a wide range of technologies, from Internet of Things (IoT) devices to social media platforms, search engines, and mobile applications. All of these technologies generate data that is collected and analyzed by companies in order to understand user behavior and preferences.
Big Data Graphic
Each day sees the digital exhaust ecosystem become more interconnected and interdependent, with data flowing through various stages of collection, processing, and analysis before being used for decision-making or other purposes. A practical example of this occurs when a business collects or purchases data from various sources, such as social media platforms and customer purchase records, and uses this data to gain insights into customer preferences and behavior for targeted advertising.
The Digital Exhaust Ecosystem includes a variety of players, including technology companies, data brokers, advertisers, and other third-party data users. These companies collect and analyze data in order to build detailed profiles of individual users, which can be used for a variety of purposes, including targeted advertising, market research, and even political campaigning.
The Digital Exhaust Ecosystem Is A Weapon For Threat Actors
Increasingly, threat actors are exploiting the Digital Exhaust Ecosystem as their abilities to leverage this ecosystem for nefarious purposes is growing more sophisticated and scalable for larger impacts. Per the 2023 Annual Threat Assessment of the U.S. Intelligence Community, “large-scale simulation and the accumulation and analysis of massive amounts of data are revolutionizing many areas of science and engineering research with the potential to influence the future battlefield and shape political discourse through disinformation operations. Our adversaries increasingly view data as a strategic resource.”
They are focused on acquiring and analyzing data—from personally identifiable information on U.S. citizens to commercial and government data—that can make their espionage, influence, kinetic and cyber-attack operations more effective; advance their exploitation of the U.S. economy; and give them strategic advantage over the United States.
The assessment further details that “Foreign intelligence services are adopting cutting-edge technologies—from advanced cyber tools to unmanned systems to enhanced technical surveillance equipment—that improve their capabilities and challenge U.S. defenses. Much of this technology is available commercially, providing a shortcut for previously unsophisticated services to become legitimate threats.”
Conclusion
In closing, any of my original LinkedIn publications are designed to provide you an interactive resource to strengthen your Operational Security (OPSEC) awareness and posture within the totality of the Digital Exhaust Ecosystem.
(EDITOR’S NOTE: The term OPSEC was coined by the U.S. military following the realization during the Vietnam War that the enemy was piecing together seemingly innocuous, unprotected information to learn about U.S. military operations in advance. Predictable behavior, lack of communications discipline, and unnecessary sharing of information resulted in the collection and exploitation of information by the enemy.)
At the heart of the Digital Exhaust Ecosystem are the users themselves, who generate vast amounts of data through their digital activities. I am here to tell you that we are not victims, we are victors. We did not get into this situation immediately so we will not remove ourselves from it immediately either. Our behavior follows our beliefs, so it is time to model that change for everyone around us. Start where you are, do what you can as there is a lot you can do.
- OPSEC has and will continue to be necessary to apply effectively throughout various industries and sectors, not just in the military.
- OPSEC is unachievable without understanding the risks and vulnerabilities the Digital Exhaust Ecosystem presents and providing users the appropriate countermeasures to ensure their safety.
Fortunately, the totality of my work has and will continue to provide you with those countermeasures but information without application will never equal transformation. Truth has to be coupled with the experience in order to be transformational.