Journal of Information System and Technology Auditing

Journal of Information System and Technology Auditing

Risk Management within the Governance Framework of Digital Trust Ecosystems

Document Type : Original Article

Author
Rahi Zandifar
PhD Student, Department of Management and Economics, Tarbiat Modares University, Tehran, Iran
10.22034/jista.2025.506948.1017
Abstract
In the digital economy, organizational success hinges on establishing valuable, trustworthy relationships and interactions. Developing a comprehensive and agile framework to shape and enhance digital trust among stakeholders is essential for creating resilient and sustainable digital ecosystems. This research aims to examine the digital trust ecosystem and propose a framework for ecosystem governance. To achieve this, a clear distinction is first drawn between digital trust and digital security. Subsequently, the Digital Trust Ecosystem Framework (DTEF) is employed, encompassing metrics and controls that can be customized to the needs of each ecosystem and applied within both centralized and decentralized governance models. The hierarchical pyramid of the framework consists of six layers: nodes, domains, trust factors, practices, activities, and outcomes. Within this model, risk management is regarded as one of the key trust factors in the Direct and Monitor domain, which serves as a bridge between the organizational and process dimensions. In this study, after delineating the first three layers of the pyramid, the applied research results for the fourth and fifth layers are presented, including the practices and activities of risk management based on the ISO/IEC 27005 standard.
Keywords
Digital Trust
Digital Ecosystem
Risk Management
Ecosystem Governance
Direct and Monitor
Digital Trust Ecosystem Framework

Subjects

Abdelsalam, O; Chantziaras, A; Joseph N. L; & Tsileponis, N. (2024). Trust matters: A global perspective on the influence of trust on bank market risk. Journal of International Financial Markets, Institutions and Money, 92, 101959.
Aguiar, M; Kiderman, J; Shekar, H. C; & Schilke, O. (2023). Safeguarding trust in a digital ecosystem. Journal of Business Strategy, (ahead-of-print).
Baker-Brunnbauer, J. (2021). TAII framework for trustworthy AI systems. ROBONOMICS: The Journal of the Automated Economy, 2, 17.
Balan, A; Tan, A. G; Kourtit, K; & Nijkamp, P. (2023). Data-Driven Intelligent Platforms—Design of Self-Sovereign Data Trust Systems. Land, 12(6), 1224.
Chang, W. (2024). The Impact of Trust on Digital Banking Services. Americas Conference on Information Systems (AMCIS) 2024, Proceedings. 1.
Chatterjee, J; Damle M; & Aslekar, A. (2023). Digital Trust in Industry 4.0 & 5.0: Impact of Frauds. In 2023 7th International Conference on Intelligent Computing and Control Systems (ICICCS) (pp. 922-928). IEEE.
Digitalswitzerland. (2022). Building a Swiss Digital Trust Ecosystem, Discussion Input.
Firdaus, F; & Tobing, A. N. (2022). The Digital Ecosystem Risk in Digital Banking: a Case Study. Risk Governance & Control: Financial Markets & Institutions, 12(4).
Gupta, V; & Shukla, S. (2024). Consumer Trust in Digital Banking: A Qualitative Study of Legal and Regulatory Impacts. Interdisciplinary Studies in Society, Law, and Politics, 3(2), 18-24.
Hazam, G. (2023). Extending Zero Trust to the End User Ecosystem, ISACA Journal, Issues 2023, vol. 1.
Herzog, C; Blank, S; & Stahl, B. C. (2024). Towards trustworthy medical AI ecosystems–a proposal for supporting responsible innovation practices in AI-based medical innovation. AI & SOCIETY, 1-21.
ISACA. (2024). Using the Digital Trust Ecosystem Framework to Achieve Trustworthy AI. White Paper.
ISO/IEC 27005:2022. (2022). Information security, cybersecurity and privacy protection: Guidance on managing information security risks, Publication date : 2022-10.
Javan Amani, V; & Akbari, H. (2022). The Effect of Quality of Banking Services on Customer Satisfaction using SERVQUAL Model (Case study: Maskan Bank Branches in Tehran). Journal of Islamic Economicis & Banking, 11 (40). (In Persian)
Kaya, F. (2025). Decentralized Governance Design: A Model-Based Approach. PhD-Thesis - Research and graduation internal, Vrije Universiteit Amsterdam.
Khashei Varnamkhasti, V; Ebrahimi, M; Khalil Nezhad, Sh; & Motahari Nezhad, F. (2024). Generative Mechanisms of Digital Banking Ecosystem Evolution, Journal of Business Intelligence Management Studies, 12(48), 33-81. (In Persian)
Khorsandi Shamir, H. (2024). Electronic banking services and customer loyalty: An analysis of the mediating role of trust in the branches of Ayandeh bank in Mashhad. Novel Explorations in Computational Science and Behavioral Management, 2(1), 23-41. (In Persian)
Kulova, M. R. (2020). Trust and Security in the Digital Economy. In International Session on Factors of Regional Extensive Development (FRED 2019) (pp. 271-274). Atlantis Press.
Malik , P. K. (2024). The Role of Digital Trust in Enhancing Cyber Security Resilience. Transforming Industry using Digital Twin Technology (pp. 59-67). Cham: Springer Nature Switzerland.
Pakdel, M; Haghighat Monfared, J; & Aligholi, M. (2024). Presenting a native model of factors affecting the formation of digital trust using a data-based approach and theory, Development and Transformation Management Journal , No. 56 (Spring 1403). (In Persian)
Reiners, S. (2022, June). Trust and its Extensions in Digital Platform Ecosystems: Key Concepts and Issues for Future Research. In 2022 IEEE 24th Conference on Business Informatics (CBI) (Vol. 2, pp. 1-8). IEEE.
Roy, S. (2024). Understanding Zero-Trust vs. Digital Trust: Demystifying Cybersecurity Paradigms, IDM Technologies.
Rychkova, I; Zdravkovic, J; & Stirna, J. (2023). Implications of trust in digital business ecosystem design: A systematic analysis of roles. PoEM Companion.
Shahzad, K; & Shahid, H. (2022). Digital trust in business ecosystem collaboration: Leveraging digital technologies to develop a framework. Trust, Digital Business and Technology: Issues and Challenges, 242- 254. Routledge Studies in Trust Research. New York: Routledge.
Strazzullo, S. (2024). Fostering digital trust in manufacturing companies: Exploring the impact of industry 4.0 technologies. Journal of Innovation & Knowledge, 9(4), 100621.
Thomas, M; Witte, G; & Von Roessing, R. (2024). Digital Trust Ecosystem Framework a Valuable Complement to COBIT, Other Frameworks.
Yusof, A. M; Zaini, M. K; Khairuddin, I. E; & Uzir, N. A. (2024). Modeling a Digital Trust Framework to Address Cybersecurity Issues in Malaysia's Digital Economy, International Transaction Journal of Engineering, Management, & Applied Sciences & Technologies, 15(4), 15A4B, 1-12.
Zarepour Nasirabadi, E; & Ghamaripoor N. (2024). Investigating the relationship between the components affecting customer trust and satisfaction in mobile banking ecosystems. Management Research in Iran, 28(1), 131-154. (In Persian)
 

  • Receive Date 17 February 2025
  • Revise Date 09 August 2025
  • Accept Date 02 September 2025
  • Publish Date 22 June 2025