Digital Identity Research Articles

Key Technologies and Typical Applications in Deepfake Detection

As deepfaking technology advances, it increasingly facilitates the seamless splicing of a person's voice, facial expressions, and body movements into source images or videos to create hyper-realistic virtual content. This growing technological sophistication, paired with the open-source nature of neural network algorithms, has unfortunately led to the exploitation of deepfake technology by individuals for illicit activities, seeking financial gain. This situation highlights the urgent necessity to thoroughly understand and vigilantly monitor the evolution of deepfake technology. This paper delves into the fundamental concepts and operational mechanisms underlying contemporary deepfake detection methods. It aims to augment the comprehension of these technologies and assesses the strengths and weaknesses of current detection approaches. This evaluation provides critical insights into their operational efficacy and reliability in differentiating genuine from manipulated content. Furthermore, the paper explores the challenges that current technologies face, such as the rapid evolution of deepfake methods that may outpace detection capabilities. By thoroughly analyzing these technologies, the paper endeavors to offer a comprehensive overview and projects future trends in deepfake detection. It anticipates developments that could significantly enhance the efficacy of countermeasures and thus bolster the fight against digital identity fraud and misinformation, safeguarding digital media integrity in an increasingly synthetic landscape.

Thioclava arctica sp. nov. and Zhongshania arctica sp. nov., isolated from the surface sediment of the Arctic Ocean and reclassification of Marortus luteolus Yu et al. 2019 as a later heterotypic synonym of Zhongshania marina On et al. 2019.

Two Gram-stain-negative bacterial strains, 15-R06ZXC-3T and R06B22T, were isolated from the surface sediment of the Arctic Ocean. Phylogenetic analyses based on the 16S rRNA gene and genome sequences indicated that strain 15-R06ZXC-3T belongs to the genus Thioclava, while strain R06B22T belongs to the genus Zhongshania. Strain 15-R06ZXC-3T showed the closest relationship to Thioclava indica DT23-4T. The digital DNA-DNA hybridization (dDDH) and average nucleotide identity (ANI) values between strain 15-R06ZXC-3T and all of the type strains of the genus Thioclava ranged from 20.8 to 30.4% and 79.1 to 85.7%, respectively. Strain R06B22T was most closely related to Zhongshania marina DSW25-10T. The dDDH and ANI values between strain R06B22T and all of the type strains of the genus Zhongshania ranged from 18.6 to 20.4% and 77.5 to 79.4%, respectively. These dDDH and ANI values were all below the standard cutoff criteria for the delineation of bacterial species, indicating that the two strains may represent novel species within their respective genera. Furthermore, their phenotypic and chemotaxonomic characteristics also differentiated them from closely related species. Based on the polyphasic analyses, strains 15-R06ZXC-3T and R06B22T separately represent novel species of the genera Thioclava and Zhongshania, for which the names Thioclava arctica sp. nov. (type strain 15-R06ZXC-3T = MCCC 1A07434T= KCTC 8342T) and Zhongshania arctica sp. nov. (type strain R06B22T = MCCC 1A08273T= KCTC 8343T) are proposed. Additionally, phylogenomic analyses showed that the strain Marortus luteolus ZX-21T was clustered with the strain Z. marina DSW25-10T and all other type strains of the genus Zhongshania. Furthermore, the ANI and dDDH values between strains ZX-21T and DSW25-10T were 97.6% and 78.8±2.5%, respectively, strongly indicating that they represented a single species. Therefore, it is proposed that M. luteolus Yu et al. 2019 be recognized as a later heterotypic synonym of Z. marina On et al. 2019.

Polymorphospora lycopeni sp. nov., a lycopene-producing actinomycetes isolated from lakeside soil sample of Baiyangdian.

A novel actinomycetes producing lycopene, designated HBU208002T, was isolated from a lakeside soil sample collected in Baiyangdian, located in Xiong'an New Area of China, and its taxonomic position was investigated by a polyphasic approach. Phylogenetic analysis based on 16S rRNA gene sequence comparisons revealed that the strain HBU208002T fell within the genus Polymorphospora and was closely related to Polymorphospora rubra JCM 14904T (99.73% identity). However, the average nucleotide identity (ANI), digital DNA-DNA hybridization (dDDH) and average amino acid identity (AAI) values between the strain HBU208002T and P. rubra JCM 14904T were 91.78, 44.7 and 91.6%, respectively, which were lower than the ANI (95-96%), DDH (>70%) and AAI (>95%) thresholds of prokaryotic microbial defined species. The predominant fatty acids of the strain HBU208002T were iso-C16:0, C17:1 ω8c. The menaquinones of the strain HBU208002T were MK-8(H8) and MK9(H4), while those of P. rubra JCM 14904T were MK-10(H6), MK-10(H4), MK-9(H6) and MK-9(H4). Meanwhile, some phenotypic characterizations and antibacterial activities distinguished the strain HBU208002T from P. rubra JCM 14904T. The strain HBU208002T exhibited inhibitory effects on Fusarium graminearum, Fusarium verticillioides and Botrytis cinerea, but P. rubra JCM 14904T had no activity. Therefore, the strain HBU208002T should be assigned as representing a novel species of the genus Polymorphospora, for which the name Polymorphospora lycopeni was proposed. The type strain is HBU208002T (=KCTC49833T = GDMCC4.236T).

Empowering decentralized identity systems for Web 3.0 in complex spherical fuzzy knowledge

The Web 3.0 network system, the next generation of the world wide web, incorporates new technologies and algorithms to enhance accessibility, decentralization, and security, mimicking human comprehension and enabling more personalized user interactions. The key component of this environment is decentralized identity management (DIM), embracing an identity and access management strategy that empowers computing devices and individuals to manage their digital personas. Aggregation operators (AOs) are valuable techniques that facilitate combining and summarizing a finite set of imprecise data. It is imperative to employ such operators to effectively address multicriteria decision-making (MCDM) issues. Yager operators have a significant extent of adaptability in managing operational environments and exhibit excellent effectiveness in addressing decision-making (DM) uncertainties. The complex spherical fuzzy (CSF) model is more effective in capturing and reflecting the known unpredictability in a DM application. This research endeavors to enhance the DM scenario of the Web 3.0 environment using Yager aggregation operators within the CSF environment. We present two innovative aggregation operators, namely complex spherical fuzzy Yager-ordered weighted averaging (CSFYOWA) and complex spherical fuzzy Yager-ordered weighted geometric (CSFYOWG) operators. We elucidate some structural characteristics of these operators and come up with an updated score function to rectify the drawbacks of the existing score function in the CSF framework. By utilizing newly proposed operators under CSF knowledge, we develop an algorithm for MCDM problems. In addition, we adeptly employ these strategies to handle the MCDM scenario, aiming to identify the optimal approach for ensuring the privacy of digital identity or data in the evolving landscape of the Web 3.0 era. Moreover, we undertake a comparative study to highlight the veracity and proficiency of the proposed techniques compared to the previously designed approaches.

A Digital Identity Intervention Incorporating Social Media Activities Promotes Identity Exploration and Commitment Among Emerging Adults

ABSTRACT Identity interventions that support young people by promoting adaptive identity processes have traditionally been designed for in-person group settings, making them time and resource intensive to implement. Here, we examine the feasibility and efficacy of the Bay Area Adult Development Program, a digital intervention program that combines reflection activities (adapted from past positive development programs) with social media activities (designed to leverage the affordances of social media for information access and social connection) to promote positive identity development among emerging adults. Following a pilot trial to assess the intervention procedure, a randomized controlled trial was conducted (Nenrolled = 267; Ncompleted = 141). Results showed that participants who completed both reflection and social media activities experienced increases in personal identity exploration and commitment (i.e. exploration in breadth, exploration in depth, commitment making, identification with commitment) and increases in exploration of vocational identity (i.e. in-depth career exploration), compared to those in the control condition. Moreover, the combination of reflection and social media activities was a more efficacious intervention treatment, compared to reflection alone. We provide evidence for the feasibility and efficacy of a digital intervention for emerging adults while pointing to future research directions on identity development in the digital context.

A behaviouristic semantic approach to blockchain-based e-commerce

Electronic commerce and finance are progressively supporting and including decentralized, shared and public ledgers such as the blockchain. This is reshaping traditional commercial activities by advancing them towards Decentralized Finance (DeFi) and Commerce 3.0, thereby supporting the latter’s potential to outpace the hurdles of central authority controllers and lawgivers. The quantity and entropy of the information that must be sought and managed to become active participants in such a relentlessly evolving scenario are increasing at a steady pace. For example, that information comprises asset or service description, general rules of the game, and specific technologies involved for decentralization. Moreover, the relevant information ought to be shared among innumerable and heterogeneous stakeholders, such as producers, buyers, digital identity providers, valuation services, and shipment services, to just name a few. A clear semantic representation of such a complex and multifaceted blockchain-based e-Commerce ecosystem would contribute dramatically to make it more usable, namely more automatically accessible to virtually anyone wanting to play the role of a stakeholder, thereby reducing programmers’ effort. However, we feel that reaching that goal still requires substantial effort in the tailoring of Semantic Web technologies, hence this article sets out on such a route and advances a stack of OWL 2 ontologies for the semantic description of decentralized e-commerce. The stack includes a number of relevant features, ranging from the applicable stakeholders through the supply chain of the offerings for an asset, up to the Ethereum blockchain, its tokens and smart contracts. Ontologies are defined by taking a behaviouristic approach to represent the various participants as agents in terms of their actions, inspired by the Theory of Agents and the related mentalistic notions. The stack is validated through appropriate metrics and SPARQL queries implementing suitable competency questions, then demonstrated through the representation of a real world use case, namely, the iExec marketplace.

Formal Security Analysis of the OpenID FAPI 2.0 Family of Protocols: Accompanying a Standardization Process

FAPI 2.0 is a suite of Web protocols developed by the OpenID Foundation’s FAPI Working Group (FAPI WG) for third-party data sharing and digital identity in high-risk environments. Even though the specifications are not completely finished, several important entities have started to adopt the FAPI 2.0 protocols, including Norway’s national HelseID, Australia’s Consumer Data Standards, as well as private companies like Authlete and Australia-based connectID; the predecessor FAPI 1.0 is in widespread use with millions of users. The FAPI WG asked us to accompany the standardization of the FAPI 2.0 protocols with a formal security analysis to proactively identify vulnerabilities before widespread deployment and to provide formal security guarantees for the standards. In this paper, we report on our analysis and findings. Our analysis is based on a detailed model of the Web infrastructure, the so-called Web Infrastructure Model (WIM), which we extend to be able to carry out our analysis of the FAPI 2.0 protocols including important extensions like FAPI-CIBA. Based on the (extended) WIM and formalizations of the security goals and attacker model laid out in the FAPI 2.0 specifications, we provide a formal model of the protocols and carry out a formal security analysis, revealing several attacks. We have worked with the FAPI WG to fix the protocols, resulting in several amendments to the specifications. With these changes in place, we have adjusted our protocol model and formally proved that the security properties hold true under the strong attacker model defined by the FAPI WG.

A Clinical Outcomes Data Archive for a Comprehensive Fetal Diagnosis and Treatment Center

Introduction: Data on near- and long-term clinical outcomes are critical for the care of all maternal-fetal patients presenting to a fetal center. This is especially important since physiologic and neurodevelopmental attributes do not manifest until later childhood when multilevel (e.g., individual, family, policy) factors have a direct influence on health outcomes. Electronic health records (EHRs) create opportunity for efficient data collection. However, documentation structures are not designed for acquisition of key attributes, and changes over time and between-clinician differences can affect resultant output. Therefore, EHR derived datasets have limited ability to accurately characterize the clinical presentation and care trajectory of patients with congenital anomalies. In addition, in most systems, the fetus lacks a digital identity and requires relinking fetal attributes documented in the maternal chart to those from the pediatric EHR. This conundrum amplifies in the setting of multiple gestation, returning maternal patients, and pregnancies with fetal demise. Moreover, current data capture systems result in incomplete abstraction of variables that may confound, mediate, or moderate critical associations. Our objective was to develop and implement a prospective data capture platform to transform EHR data into an analytic-grade database for multipurpose use. Methods: A unified platform for longitudinal follow-up of maternal-child dyads cared for at our fetal center, named the Clinical Outcomes Data Archive (CODA), was constructed. CODA was designed using a data dictionary based on multidisciplinary and interprofessional expert input, a relational identity for each patient, fetus, and pregnancy, and a process by which EHR-sourced and chart-abstracted data are validated by a well-trained team. Descriptive analyses were performed for data acquired between July 2022 and July 2023, and a comparison of studies before and after implementation of CODA is presented. Conclusion: 5,394,106 data points were validated for 7,662 patients across 12 conditions. 2% of data points were found to be unreliable or undocumented. 91% of data points were sourced from the EHR. Eighty-five percent of condition-specific variables required manual chart abstraction. The study conducted with CODA was able to contribute to 18 other studies. CODA successfully merges EHR-sourced and manually abstracted documentation for longitudinal study of the maternal-child dyad.

Campylobacter californiensis sp. nov., isolated from cattle and feral swine.

Nine Campylobacter strains were isolated from cattle and feral swine faeces: three were recovered during a 2007 Campylobacter-associated outbreak linked to a dairy, and the other six were isolated during a 2009-2010 survey of farms and ranches in Central California. The species identification of these strains could not be determined by 16S rRNA gene sequencing but were most similar to Campylobacter concisus and Campylobacter mucosalis. Additional atpA typing indicated that the nine strains composed a discrete novel clade related to C. concisus and C. mucosalis. A polyphasic study was undertaken here to clarify their taxonomic position. Phylogenetic analyses were performed based on 16S rRNA gene sequences and the concatenated sequences of 330 core genes. The core gene analysis placed the nine strains into a clade well separated from the other Campylobacter taxa, indicating that these strains represent a novel Campylobacter species. Pairwise digital DNA-DNA hybridization and average nucleotide identity values between these strains and other campylobacters are lower than 16 and 73%, respectively, further supporting their placement into a novel taxon. Standard phenotypic testing was performed. All strains are microaerobic or anaerobic, motile, Gram-negative, slightly-curved rods that are oxidase positive but catalase negative. Strains can be distinguished from the other catalase-negative Campylobacter species using phenotypic markers such as motility, oxidase activity, cephalothin resistance, hippuricase activity, growth at 30 °C, and α-haemolysis. The data presented here show that these strains represent a novel species within Campylobacter, for which the name Campylobacter californiensis sp. nov. (type strain RM6914T=LMG 32304T=CCUG 75329T) is proposed.

Personal Identity Proofing for E-Commerce: A Case Study of Online Service Users in the Republic of Korea

The rapid expansion of non-face-to-face e-commerce services in the Korea has significantly increased the importance of personal identity proofing (PIP) for verifying users in online transactions, such as payments, refunds, membership registrations, and access to age-restricted products. Currently, personal identity proofing agencies (PIPAs) indiscriminately provide all of a user’s personal information to internet service providers (ISPs), leading to substantial privacy concerns and preventing users from selectively disclosing only the necessary information. The objective of this paper is to enhance the safety, convenience, and security of PIP services by proposing a method that empowers users to control the personal information they disclose while enabling digital identity integration for both online and offline applications. To achieve this, an extensive overview and analysis of the current PIP systems in Korea is presented, including methods. The strengths and weaknesses of these systems are critically examined, revealing limitations in privacy protection, user convenience, and security. Based on this analysis, a new method is proposed that introduces differentiated levels of PIP means according to authentication strength, allowing for the minimal necessary disclosure of personal information. The proposed method aims to improve the stability and reliability of the PIP service environment by addressing current privacy concerns and enhancing user control over personal information. This approach can be applied to e-commerce services in Korea and other countries facing similar challenges, contributing to the development of safer and more reliable online services.

Wallet wars or digital public infrastructure? Orchestrating a digital identity data ecosystem from a government perspective

With the eIDAS 2.0 legislation, the European Union seeks to establish a digital identity data ecosystem and to empower citizens to manage digital credentials from various sources through an ID wallet interface. To achieve this, governments must develop holistic orchestration models integrating technical, regulatory, and economic perspectives. This approach will foster ecosystem value creation, address orchestration tensions, and design sustainable operating models for various ecosystem actors. While IS research has explored private-sector governance mechanisms in platform and data ecosystems, a research gap exists in understanding public–private orchestration where governments act as orchestrators. We address this through a structured document analysis of 80 position papers from various stakeholders participating in a public government consultation process and 14 semi-structured in-depth interviews. By examining ecosystem value creation mechanisms, orchestration tensions, and monetization challenges, we identify two government orchestration standard types for the ID wallet provision. The Government ID-Infrastructure Wallet model embodies an ecosystem-integrated public infrastructure, while the Trust ID Wallet Federation exemplifies a dynamic and competition-driven approach. By bridging the self-sovereign identity ecosystem paradigm with digital identity infrastructure research, our work contributes to the understanding and theoretical development of data ecosystems and digital identity research from a government perspective.

Evaluasi Program IKD (Identitas Kependudukan Digital) Dalam Mendukung Sistem Government di Kecamatan Kenjeran Kota Surabaya

In population administration public services, the government is now adopting e-government-based innovations such as Digital Population Identity (IKD) which includes digitization of population documents including E-KTP. Through the activation of IKD, residents can access their personal data in electronic form, utilize in formation and communication technology, increase the use of digitization, accelerate digital public or private services, and ensure the security of IKD ownership. The implementation of IKD is led by the Director General of Population Administration with the assistance of local governments at various levels, for example Surabaya City where the Dispendukcapil works with the government at the Kenjeran Sub-district level. The evaluation of the IKD program in Kenjeran sub- district followed the steps of Isaac and Michael's 1984 program evaluation theory, from formulating questions and information needs, to presenting data to decision makers. The research was conducted in a descriptive qualitative man nearby utilizing interviews, observation, and documentation as primary and secondary data collection techniques. The results of the analysis show that Kenjeran Sub-district has succeeded in carrying out its duties effectively, but needs to increase socialization and education to the community so that the implementation of Digital Population Identity can run smoothly and provide maximum benefits to the community. Keywords: E-Government, Evaluation, Digital Residence Identity.

Sphingomonas rustica sp. nov. and Sphingomonas agrestis sp. nov., novel carotenoid-producing bacterial species isolated from farm soil.

Two yellow-pigmented novel strains, designated HF-S3T and HF-S4T, were isolated from farm soil in Paju, Republic of Korea. Cells of the two strains are characteristically Gram-stain-negative, facultatively anaerobic, catalase- and oxidase-positive, non-motile and rod-shaped. Strain HF-S3T grew at 10-37 °C, while HF-S4T grew at 15-35 °C. Both strains grew at pH 5.0-12.0 and in NaCl concentrations (w/v) of 0-2.0%. Phylogenetic analysis based on 16S rRNA gene sequences indicated that HF-S3T and HF-S4T belong to the genus Sphingomonas, with HF-S3T exhibiting 97.7, 97.6 and 97.4% similarity to Sphingomonas cannabina DM2-R-LB4T, Sphingomonas leidyi DSM 4733T and Sphingomonas canadensis FWC47T, respectively. Strain HF-S4T displayed 97.9, 97.7 and 97.6% similarity to Sphingomonas psychrotolerans Cra20T, Sphingomonas gei ZFGT-11T and Sphingomonas naasensis KIS18-15T, respectively. The DNA G+C contents of HF-S3T and HF-S4T were 67.0 and 66.5 mol%, respectively. The digital DNA-DNA hybridization and average nucleotide identity values among the novel and related type strains were 20.2-28.2% and 75.9-84.3%, respectively. They all contained C14:0 2-OH and C16:0, summed feature 8 (C18:1 ω6c and/or C18:1 ω7c) as the major fatty acids and ubiquinone-10 as the predominant respiratory quinone. Strains HF-S3T and HF-S4T were found to produce carotenoid-type pigments. Based on polyphasic taxonomic analysis, the new isolates ostensibly represent two novel species of the genus Sphingomonas, with the proposed names Sphingomonas rustica sp. nov. and Sphingomonas agrestis sp. nov. for strains HF-S3T and HF-S4T, respectively. The S. rustica and S. agrestis type strains are HF-S3T (=KACC 23554T =TBRC 18352T) and HF-S4T (=KACC 23386T =TBRC 17899T), respectively.

Creating Digital Identity for Arabic National Libraries from Content Analysis of Missions & Vision Statements Using Machine Learning Algorithms.

Creating Digital Identity for Arabic National Libraries from Content Analysis of Missions & Vision Statements Using Machine Learning Algorithms.

Towards generalized face forgery detection with domain-robust representation learning

Face forgery detection is crucial for the security of digital identities. However, existing methods often struggle to generalize effectively to unseen domains due to the domain shift between training and testing data. We propose a Domain-robust Representation Learning (DRRL) method for generalized face forgery detection. Specifically, we observe that domain shifts in face forgery detection tasks are often caused by forgery differences and content differences between domain data, while the limitations of training data lead the model to overfit to these feature expressions in the seen domain. Therefore, DRRL enhances the model's generalization to unseen domains by first adding representative data representations to mitigate overfitting to seen data and then removing the features of expressed domain information to learn a robust, discriminative representation of domain variation. Data augmentation is achieved by stylizing sample representations and exploring representative new styles to generate rich data variants, with the Content-style Augmentation (CSA) module and Forgery-style Augmentation (FSA) module implemented for content and forgery expression, respectively. Based on this, the Content Decorrelation (CTD) module and Sensitive Channels Drop (SCD) module are used to remove content features irrelevant to forgery and domain-sensitive forgery features, encouraging the model to focus on clean and robust forgery features, thereby achieving the goal of learning domain-robust representations. Extensive experiments on five large-scale datasets demonstrate that our method exhibits advanced and stable generalization performance in practical scenarios.

Digital identification and adulteration analysis of bupleurum chinense and bupleurum marginatum based on "digital identity" and UHPLC-QTOF-MSE

Background and objectivesone of the legal sources of Bupleuri Radix (BR) is the Bupleurum chinense (BC), rather than the Bupleurum marginatum (BM). However, fake incidents of BM mixed with BC often occur in the market, which makes it more difficult to supervise the quality of BR and even endanger the life and health of patients. To strengthen the quality control and supervision of BP, we carried out digital identification and adulteration analysis of BC and BM based on the "digital identity" and UHPLC-QTOF-MSE. Methodfirstly, the BC and BM were analyzed by UHPLC-QTOF-MSE to obtain the quantized data characterization of chemical components. Secondly, the shared ions were extracted from different batches of BC and BM's control medicinal materials as their "data representation of ions", respectively. Then, the data matrices of unique ions of BC relative to BM and BM relative to BC were screened out, and the Top-N ions were outputted as the "digital identities" of BC and BM, sorted by ionic strength. Finally, the above "digital identities" of BC and BM were used as benchmarks for matching positive samples and commercial samples to feedback on matching credibility (MC). Resultsthe results showed that based on the "digital identities" of BC and BM, the digital identification of BC, BM, and positive samples can be realized efficiently and accurately at the individual level of Chinese medicine, even if 3 % of BM in the mixed samples can still be identified efficiently and accurately. 10 batches of market samples were identified as adulterated samples. Furthermore, chemometric analysis has proven the reliability of BC and BM-based "digital identity" identification. ConclusionIt proved that the identification and adulteration analysis of two herbs can be realized efficiently and quickly through the "digital identities" of BC and BM. It has important reference significance for developing non-targeted digital identification of herbal medicines at the individual level of Chinese medicine based on "digital identity", which was beneficial to the construction of digital Chinese medicine and digital quality control.

Flavobacterium nakdongensis sp. nov., Isolated from Fresh Water during the Cyanobacterial Bloom Period.

A novel Gram-negative bacterial strain, 20NA77.7T , was isolated from fresh water of the Nakdong River. Strain 20NA77.7T shared the highest similarity with Flavobacterium indicum GPTSA100-9T (97.91%) and Flavobacterium urocaniciphilum DSM 27078T (96.24%) in the 16S rRNA gene sequence. The digital DNA-DNA hybridization and average nucleotide identity values for strain 20NA77.7T with Flavobacterium species were below 20.8% and 77.33%, respectively. The major fatty acids of strain 20NA77.7T were identified as iso-C15:0, iso-C16:0, iso-C15:1 G, anteiso-C15:0, iso-C15:0 3OH, and isoC16:0 3OH. Strain 20NA77.7T contained phosphatidylethanolamine, one unidentified aminolipid, and three unidentified lipids as polar lipids and menaquinone-6 as menaquinone. The polyphasic evidence supports the classification of strain 20NA77.7T as a novel species belonging to the genus Flavobacterium, for which the name Flavobacterium nakdongensis is proposed. The type strain is 20NA77.7T (= KCTC 102000T = LMG 33137T ).

Discovery of two new actinobacteria, Micromonospora palythoicola sp. nov. and Streptomyces poriticola sp. nov., isolated from marine invertebrates

Marine invertebrates represent an underexplored reservoir for actinobacteria, which are known to synthesize novel bioactive compounds. This study isolated 37 actinobacterial strains from five distinct marine invertebrate hosts, namely Chondrilla australiensis, Palythoa sp., Favia sp., Porites lutea, and Acropora cervicornis, while no strains were obtained from Lissoclinum sp. and Lithophyllon sp. These isolates were taxonomically classified into six genera: Gordonia, Microbacterium, Micromonospora, Nocardia, Rhodococcus, and Streptomyces, with Streptomyces and Micromonospora being notably predominant. Comparative genomic analysis facilitated the identification of two novel species: Micromonospora palythoicola sp. nov. (strain S2-005T = TBRC 18343T and NBRC 116545T) and Streptomyces poriticola sp. nov. (strain C6-003T, =TBRC 17807T and NBRC 116425T). Both species exhibited substantial genetic differences from their nearest known species as demonstrated by digital DNA-DNA hybridization and average nucleotide identity scores, which fell below the thresholds of 70% and 95%, respectively. Streptomyces poriticola C6-003T displayed significant antimicrobial activity and selective cytotoxicity against human breast cancer MCF-7 cells, with reduced toxicity towards human dermal papilla cells. Micromonospora palythoicola S2-005T manifested antimicrobial properties against Streptococcus mutans and Kocuria rhizophila. These findings highlight the considerable diversity of actinobacteria within marine invertebrates and underscore their potential as a source of new species with promising biological properties for therapeutic applications.

“What is your digital identity?” Unpacking users’ understandings of an evolving concept in datafied societies

Digital identity has become a central concept in understanding how people’s online presence is shaped and made sense of. Although extensively studied, the prevailing focus has been on how online identities are shaped by digital platforms or how users curate and perform these identities. How users perceive and assess this concept, however, has received comparatively less attention. In this article, we take a qualitative, user-centric approach to the meaning of digital identity, drawing on insights from 17 online focus group discussions involving 86 participants in Portugal. We identify three distinctive understandings – digital identification, self-presentation, and the datafied self – each corresponding to specific facets of users’ online experiences. Our findings underscore the multidimensionality of digital identity, highlighting its dynamic nature and potential for ongoing reinterpretation. This work contributes to the existing literature by highlighting how the concept’s ever-expanding complexity relates to people’s sensemaking practices about identity, agency, and digital platforms in datafied societies.

Comparative Analysis: Machine vs Human Translation of Educational Scientific Texts. Challenges and Solutions

Introduction. The purpose of this article is to analyze the features of identity formation and identification processes in postmodern society and in digital society. The article explores various approaches to the concept of «identity» within the framework of socio-humanitarian theories. The interrelation of real and virtual identity, the emergence of new forms and models of identity are considered. Two approaches to the analysis of identity in a digital society are analyzed and compared: digital optimism and digital pessimism.Methodology and sources. The article uses a comparative analysis of various theoretical approaches to identity formation. An interdisciplinary approach is used to understand the features of identity in the era of digitalization. As the main sources for the study of the phenomenon of identity there were used works of classics of sociology and psychology E. Erickson, J.G. Meade, E. Durkheim, as well as studies of representatives of modern philosophical and sociological theories Z. Bauman, A. Giddens, S. Turkle, A.A. Lisenkova, T.G. Leshkevich.Results and discussion. It is shown that in postmodern society, identity is characterized by the processes of individualization, fragmentation and the absence of a single cultural center. In a digital society, along with the processes of individualization, there are processes of standardization and unification of person. It is concluded that in a digital society, identity has positive and negative sides. On the one hand, there is a positive vector for the use of online communications, network interaction of people, which destroys spatial and temporal boundaries, as well as social barriers. On the other hand, new types of virtual identity are being formed, challenging a person's own identity.Conclusion. It is concluded that the digital society changes human identity, identification practices and strategies. The consequence of these processes is the formation of a person fused with digital technologies, which leads to the transformation of the social order, social norms and society as a whole.