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Walking a tightrope (6): Social and business management risks

Colley Hwang, DIGITIMES, Taipei 0

Credit: DIGITIMES

We all know the importance of information security, but hacking and ransomware attacks are increasing, and the Trojan horse viruses that can lurk in the information systems are even harder to foil. What enterprises need are three sets of backups, two systems, and a mechanism for off-site rescue. These are already issues that we have to face. Theft of data, technology, or disruption of telecommunication networks means that 5G and 6G will be all empty talks if these infrastructures are not reliable.

The failures and imbalances in technology governance can be seen in the virtual currency leveraging blockchain. As we expand our investment in the metaverse, the economic models behind the various transactions are taking shape. The application of the metaverse requires virtual currency as a transaction tool, and young people are attracted to these new technologies that they see as the future of the world and the world of the future. Young people who use virtual currency as payrolls may be a high earners who dn't have to pay tax.

According to TripleA's survey, there are about 283 million people in the world who own cryptocurrency: 79% are men and only 21% are women. And more than 58% are young people under the age of 34, and 82% have a bachelor's degree or higher. Is this the epitome of the digital world of the future? Are you, or your next generation, in the game?

In 1958, the year I was born, the total population of Taiwan was 10 million, and the total number of newborns was 413,000. Between 1958 and 1963, there were no less than 420,000 newborns each year, which was the most important human resource in Taiwan at the beginning of the development of the electronics industry. It had been expected previously that the number of newborns in Taiwan would be less than 160,000 by 2030, and it turned out that such a scenario already became a reality in 2021. Low birth rates mean a decreasing population and a national security crisis with a low percentage of labor force and side effects of such a development can be seen in Japan.

This is a clear risk for Taiwan. Labor force participation rate in Taiwan is now lower than 45%. Young people who are physically and mentally exhausted face confidence crisis. According to a survey conducted by the World Economic Forum (WEF), 84% of respondents are pessimistic about economic growth in the next two years, and countries have been lowering their GDP growth expectations since the first quarter of 2022, which obviously means economic difficulties in the next two years.

Colley Hwang, president of DIGITIMES Asia, is a tech industry analyst with more than three decades of experience under his belt. He has written several books about the trends and developments of the tech industry, including Asian Edge: On the Frontline of the ICT World published in 2019, and Disconnected ICT Supply Chain: New Power Plays Unfolding published in 2020.