Technology for social change is revolutionizing the way we live, interact, and advocate for human rights. With the rise of digital technologies, the landscape of human rights has expanded to include digital rights, which are essential for promoting and protecting human dignity in the online sphere. In this article, we will explore the intersection of human rights and digital rights, and discuss the ways in which technology can be harnessed to promote social justice and equality.

Understanding Human Rights

Human rights are fundamental rights and freedoms that belong to every human being, regardless of their nationality, ethnicity, gender, or socioeconomic status. These rights are universal, inalienable, and interdependent, and are enshrined in international law through various treaties and conventions. Human rights include the right to life, liberty, and security of person, as well as the right to freedom of expression, assembly, and association.

Historical Development of Human Rights

The concept of human rights has evolved over time, with significant milestones including the adoption of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights (UDHR) in 1948. The UDHR sets out a broad range of civil, political, economic, social, and cultural rights that are essential for human dignity and well-being. Since then, numerous international and regional human rights instruments have been developed to further elaborate and protect human rights.

Key Principles of Human Rights

Human rights are based on several key principles, including universality, indivisibility, interdependence, and inalienability. These principles emphasize that human rights belong to all individuals, and that they are fundamental to human dignity and well-being. Human rights are also non-discriminatory, meaning that they apply equally to all individuals, regardless of their background or circumstances.

Digital Rights: An Emerging Area of Human Rights

Digital rights refer to the human rights that are relevant to the online sphere, including the right to freedom of expression, access to information, and privacy. The rise of digital technologies has created new opportunities for individuals to exercise their human rights, but it has also raised new challenges and concerns. Digital rights are essential for promoting and protecting human dignity in the online sphere, and for ensuring that individuals can exercise their human rights in a safe and secure environment.

The Importance of Digital Rights

Digital rights are essential for promoting and protecting human dignity in the online sphere. The internet and other digital technologies have transformed the way we live, interact, and access information, and have created new opportunities for individuals to exercise their human rights. However, the online sphere also poses new risks and challenges, including online harassment, cyberbullying, and surveillance.

Key Digital Rights

Key digital rights include the right to freedom of expression, access to information, and privacy. These rights are essential for promoting and protecting human dignity in the online sphere, and for ensuring that individuals can exercise their human rights in a safe and secure environment. Other digital rights include the right to online assembly and association, and the right to protection against online harassment and cyberbullying.

The Intersection of Human Rights and Digital Rights

The intersection of human rights and digital rights is complex and multifaceted. Human rights are essential for promoting and protecting human dignity in the online sphere, and digital rights are essential for ensuring that individuals can exercise their human rights in a safe and secure environment. The intersection of human rights and digital rights raises new challenges and concerns, including the need to balance the right to freedom of expression with the need to protect individuals from online harassment and cyberbullying.

Challenges and Concerns

The intersection of human rights and digital rights raises several challenges and concerns, including the need to balance competing human rights and the need to protect individuals from online risks and harms. Other challenges and concerns include the need to promote digital literacy and online safety, and the need to ensure that digital technologies are accessible and inclusive.

Opportunities and Solutions

The intersection of human rights and digital rights also presents several opportunities and solutions, including the use of digital technologies to promote and protect human rights. Digital technologies can be used to promote human rights education and awareness, and to provide individuals with access to information and resources. Other opportunities and solutions include the development of digital tools and platforms that promote online safety and inclusivity.

Conclusion

In conclusion, the intersection of human rights and digital rights is complex and multifaceted. Human rights are essential for promoting and protecting human dignity in the online sphere, and digital rights are essential for ensuring that individuals can exercise their human rights in a safe and secure environment. By understanding the intersection of human rights and digital rights, we can promote and protect human dignity in the online sphere, and ensure that individuals can exercise their human rights in a safe and secure environment.

Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs)

What are human rights?

Human rights are fundamental rights and freedoms that belong to every human being, regardless of their nationality, ethnicity, gender, or socioeconomic status. These rights are universal, inalienable, and interdependent, and are enshrined in international law through various treaties and conventions.

What are digital rights?

Digital rights refer to the human rights that are relevant to the online sphere, including the right to freedom of expression, access to information, and privacy. Digital rights are essential for promoting and protecting human dignity in the online sphere, and for ensuring that individuals can exercise their human rights in a safe and secure environment.

Why are digital rights important?

Digital rights are essential for promoting and protecting human dignity in the online sphere. The internet and other digital technologies have transformed the way we live, interact, and access information, and have created new opportunities for individuals to exercise their human rights. However, the online sphere also poses new risks and challenges, including online harassment, cyberbullying, and surveillance.

How can we promote and protect digital rights?

We can promote and protect digital rights by promoting digital literacy and online safety, and by ensuring that digital technologies are accessible and inclusive. We can also promote and protect digital rights by developing digital tools and platforms that promote online safety and inclusivity, and by advocating for policies and laws that protect digital rights.

What is the relationship between human rights and digital rights?

The relationship between human rights and digital rights is complex and multifaceted. Human rights are essential for promoting and protecting human dignity in the online sphere, and digital rights are essential for ensuring that individuals can exercise their human rights in a safe and secure environment. The intersection of human rights and digital rights raises new challenges and concerns, including the need to balance competing human rights and the need to protect individuals from online risks and harms.

Introduction to Generative AI

It’s been just over two years since the launch of ChatGPT kickstarted the generative AI revolution. In that short time, we’ve seen it evolve to become a powerful and truly useful business tool. But the ways it’s being used might come as a surprise. When we first saw it, many of us probably assumed that it would mainly be used to carry out creative and technical tasks on our behalf, such as coding and writing content.

Unexpected Uses of Generative AI

However, a recent survey reported in Harvard Business Review suggests this isn’t the case. Rather than doing our work for us, the majority of users are looking to it for support, organization, and even friendship! Topping the list of use cases, according to the report, is therapy and companionship. This suggests that its 24/7 availability and ability to offer anonymous, honest advice and feedback is highly valued. On the other hand, marketing tasks—such as blog writing, creating social media posts or advertising copy—appear far lower down the list of popular uses.

Insights And Implications

One thing that’s clear is that although generative AI is quite capable of doing work for us while we put our feet up and relax, many prefer to use it for generating ideas and brainstorming. This could simply come down to the quality of AI-generated material or even inbuilt bias in humans that deter us from wanting to consume robotic content. It’s often noted that generative AI writing style can come across as very bland and formulaic. When asked, most people still say they would rather read content created by humans. Even if, in practice, we can’t always tell the difference.

As the report’s author, Marc Zao-Sanders states, “the top 10 genAI use cases in 2025 indicate a shift from technical to emotional applications, and in particular, growth in areas such as therapy, personal productivity and personal development.” After therapy and companionship, the most common uses for generative AI were "organizing my life," "finding purpose," and "enhancing learning." The first technical use case, “creating code” ranked fifth on the list, followed by “generating ideas”. This upends some seemingly common-sense assumptions about how society would adopt generative AI, suggesting it will be used in more reflective, introspective ways than was at first predicted.

Therapeutic Uses and Education

In particular, therapeutic uses topping the list may seem surprising. But when we consider that worldwide, there is a shortage of professionals trained to talk us through mental health challenges, it makes more sense. The survey’s findings are supported by the wide range of emerging genAI applications designed for therapeutic use, such as Wysa, Youper and Woebot. A growing need to continuously learn and upskill in the face of technological advancement could also explain the popularity of using AI to enhance our education and professional development.

Future Thoughts

The current trajectory of AI use suggests a future where AI is seen as a collaborative and supportive assistant, rather than a replacement for human qualities and abilities. This has important implications for the way it will be used in business. Adopting it for use cases that support human workers, rather than attempting to replace them, is likely to lead to happier, less stressed and ultimately more productive employees. There is already growing evidence that businesses see investing in AI-based mental health companions and chatbots as a way of mitigating the loss of productivity caused by stress and anxiety.

Conclusion

Overall, these insights indicate that generative AI is being adopted into a broader range of facets of everyday life, rather than simply doing work that we don’t want to do ourselves. As generative AI continues to evolve, we can expect it to become better at these types of tasks. Personalized wellness support, guided learning and education opportunities organizing workflows and brainstorming ideas are all areas where it can provide a huge amount of value to many organizations while removing anxiety that it is here to replace us or make us redundant. Understanding how AI is being used today is essential if we want to influence how it evolves in the future. While it’s easy to imagine a world where robots take over all our tasks, the real opportunity lies in using AI to help us work more intelligently, collaborate more effectively, and support healthier, more balanced ways of working.

FAQs

Q: What is the primary use of generative AI according to recent research?
A: The primary use of generative AI is for therapy, companionship, and life organization, rather than technical tasks like coding or content creation.
Q: Why are people using generative AI for therapeutic purposes?
A: People are using generative AI for therapeutic purposes because of its 24/7 availability and ability to offer anonymous, honest advice and feedback, as well as a shortage of professionals trained to talk us through mental health challenges.
Q: What are the implications of using generative AI in business?
A: The implications of using generative AI in business are that it can lead to happier, less stressed, and ultimately more productive employees, and that it can provide a huge amount of value to many organizations while removing anxiety that it is here to replace us or make us redundant.
Q: What is the future of generative AI?
A: The future of generative AI suggests a future where AI is seen as a collaborative and supportive assistant, rather than a replacement for human qualities and abilities, and where it will be used to help us work more intelligently, collaborate more effectively, and support healthier, more balanced ways of working.

Enterprise adoption of digital tools and platforms continues to accelerate, expanding the number of vendors, services, and partners organizations depend on to maintain day-to-day operations. But while this interconnectivity fuels agility and innovation, it also introduces a growing set of risks—many of which originate outside the organization.

Third-party ecosystems have become one of the most significant and complex parts of the enterprise attack surface. According to industry data, approximately 60% of data breaches in large organizations over the past year involved a third party. Despite that, Third-Party Risk Management remains one of the more outdated and fragmented areas of cybersecurity—often reliant on static assessments, manual questionnaires, and labor-intensive follow-ups.

As companies look to scale faster, they’re increasingly constrained by TPRM programs that can’t keep up. The question many CISOs are asking is: Can organizations grow without increasing their risk exposure?

The Growing Complexity of Vendor Relationships

Enterprises today rely on hundreds, if not thousands, of third-party vendors—ranging from SaaS providers and cloud platforms to contractors and managed service providers. The scale of these relationships, combined with the speed at which they’re adopted, presents a significant challenge for teams tasked with ensuring those vendors are secure and compliant.

The issue isn’t limited to volume. Traditional TPRM processes were designed for slower, more predictable procurement cycles. They often fall short when applied to decentralized decision-making and agile vendor onboarding models. And while technology in other areas of the enterprise has evolved rapidly, TPRM tools and workflows have largely stayed the same.

Saket Modi, co-founder and CEO of SAFE, described the core problem as more than just a tooling gap. “Traditional TPRM is a perfect storm of fragmentation, manual labor, and misaligned incentives,” Modi said.

He argues that while digital transformation has outpaced most organizational functions, TPRM has remained “tethered to spreadsheets, one-off tools, and reactive thinking.”

TPRM Is Being Redefined

In response to these challenges, a new generation of solutions is emerging that seeks to rethink the structure of TPRM altogether. SAFE just announced its launch of what it describes as the industry’s first fully autonomous TPRM platform.

According to the company, the platform is built on a system of specialized AI agents that handle key parts of the vendor risk lifecycle—such as onboarding, assessments, and ongoing monitoring—with minimal human intervention. This agentic AI model enables the automation of previously manual workflows and provides continuous visibility into vendor risk.

SAFE claims the approach has resonated with customers, stating it has reached $10 million in annual recurring revenue from TPRM alone in less than one year, with adoption by enterprises like Instacart, Danaher, and Victoria’s Secret.

Modi distinguishes SAFE’s approach from traditional automation tools, emphasizing the difference between task execution and intelligent decision-making: “Automation executes tasks. Autonomy makes decisions,” he explained.

The platform reportedly integrates public data sources, questionnaire responses, and contract terms to evaluate third-party risk in real time, enabling security teams to scale oversight without proportional increases in headcount.

Strategic Implications for Security and the Business

Beyond operational efficiency, platforms that provide real-time, context-aware TPRM have the potential to deliver strategic benefits. Continuous risk intelligence allows executives to assess the potential impact of vendor decisions on broader business outcomes and regulatory exposure. It also supports better alignment between security teams, legal departments, and procurement functions.

When TPRM shifts from being a point-in-time check to a dynamic feedback loop, it changes how organizations think about trust, risk tolerance, and resource allocation. It also provides a stronger foundation for reporting and governance—particularly as regulatory frameworks such as the SEC’s cybersecurity disclosure rule and the EU’s DORA directive introduce stricter expectations for third-party oversight.

The Shift Toward Predictive TPRM

Looking forward, the TPRM market is expected to evolve beyond identification and into prediction. SAFE and others in the space anticipate capabilities that simulate risk scenarios, model potential attack paths, and provide proactive mitigation strategies before an incident occurs.

This next phase will likely emphasize deeper integration with enterprise systems, contract workflows, and external data feeds—enabling TPRM to be embedded at the speed of procurement rather than lagging behind it. It also suggests that security teams will need to be more data-driven, cross-functional, and equipped with tools that go beyond assessment to support decision-making.

Aligning Trust with Velocity

Organizations can’t afford for security processes to become bottlenecks. At the same time, moving too quickly without appropriate controls can introduce liabilities that are difficult to unwind.

Autonomous, AI-driven TPRM platforms point to a path forward—one that supports velocity without sacrificing visibility. Whether this approach becomes the industry standard remains to be seen, but there is growing consensus that managing third-party risk should be as agile and intelligent as the businesses it serves.

Conclusion

The evolution of Third-Party Risk Management towards more autonomous and AI-driven platforms is not just about keeping up with the speed of modern business; it’s about enabling it. By automating manual processes, providing real-time risk intelligence, and facilitating predictive risk management, these platforms can help organizations grow without increasing their risk exposure. As the TPRM landscape continues to evolve, it’s crucial for enterprises to stay ahead of the curve and adopt solutions that can support their velocity and agility.

FAQs

• What is Third-Party Risk Management (TPRM)?
  TPRM refers to the processes and tools used by organizations to assess, monitor, and mitigate risks associated with third-party vendors, suppliers, and partners.
• Why is traditional TPRM outdated?
  Traditional TPRM relies heavily on manual processes, static assessments, and labor-intensive follow-ups, which cannot keep pace with the speed and complexity of modern business operations.
• How does autonomous TPRM work?
  Autonomous TPRM utilizes specialized AI agents to automate key parts of the vendor risk lifecycle, providing continuous visibility into vendor risk and enabling real-time decision-making.
• What are the benefits of adopting autonomous TPRM platforms?
  The benefits include operational efficiency, strategic decision-making, and the ability to scale oversight without proportional increases in headcount, ultimately supporting business agility and velocity.
• What does the future of TPRM look like?
  The future of TPRM is expected to involve predictive capabilities, deeper integration with enterprise systems, and a more data-driven approach to risk management, aiming to simulate risk scenarios and provide proactive mitigation strategies.