What is Identity Verification? Here’s the end-to-end process

As digital becomes more prevalent in our lives, it is increasingly important to authenticate identification online in order to avoid fraud and personal data misuse. 

Identity verification is a method of ensuring that a person, whether a user, consumer, or client, is authentic and legitimate.

Let’s look at how identity verification works and how companies in various industries might profit from it.

What is Identity Verification?

Identity verification is the process of correlating a person’s stated identification with the supporting documentation they provide. 

This means it checks the authenticity of identification documents and other pieces of proof to ensure the individual is who they claim to be.

Official identification, security credentials, and legal documents can all be used as crucial proof in this procedure. Identity verification service has the ability to thoroughly analyze these documents to guarantee their legitimacy, frequently doing so remotely via online identity verification.

How does Identity Verification work?

Identity verification can be electronic/automated or traditional/manual, therefore the process appears different depending on which approach is employed.

Traditional identity verification requires the clients to present actual ID and documentation, and then compare the photo on the ID to the person sitting in front of them. The information in the ID is then compared to data available in public databases.

While on the other hand, electronic identity verification requires the clients to submit them a photo ID as well as a real-time selfie, which they then compare. The information in the ID is then automatically cross-referenced against public databases.

Signzy’s digital identity verification solution is entirely electronic and does not involve clients’ physical presence at a branch or location.

It authenticates clients’ identities using fully automated, remote methods. Rather than relying on human judgment, which raises the chance of inaccuracy, it uses superior AI technology to conduct all the validation.

 

Methods for verifying personal identity

There are many different methods of digital identity verification, which all work in different ways. These methods include:

1. ID Document Verification: Determines whether an ID (such as a driver’s license, passport, or government ID) is valid.

2. Biometric Verification: Determines whether the person presenting the ID is the same person whose portrait appears on the ID using selfies.
Biometric data is extremely secure and difficult to copy, adding an extra layer of protection to identity verification operations.

3. Liveness Detection: Determines whether a selfie is genuine by recognising spoofing attempts such as face masks or images of photos.
To determine liveness, a number of procedures are utilised, including asking the individual to perform specified movements such as blinking or smiling.

4. Knowledge-based Authentication (KBA): Generates “out of wallet” questions based on information from the client’s personal credit file.

These questions may include information about previous addresses, financial background, or other personal information that is not readily available to impostors.

5. One-time passcode (OTP) verification: During the verification procedure, the client receives a one-time passcode via SMS or email.

 

6. Trusted Identity Network: Uses a client’s current credentials from another provider to authenticate their identity and eliminate friction during the account opening and onboarding process.

 

7. Database Methods: Database approaches use data from social media, offline databases, and other sources to validate the information provided by the client.

8. Behavioural analysis: Uses patterns of behaviour, such as typing speed or mouse movements, to confirm an individual’s identification.

By evaluating these behavioural biometrics, identity verification services can discover anomalies or unusual behaviour that may indicate fraudulent activities.

 

How are biometrics used for identity verification?

Fingerprints, iris and retina scans, facial traits, and palmprints are examples of biometrics that are used to identify individuals.

These are unique to each individual, making them an extremely powerful identification verification tool. Advantages include the fact that they are incredibly difficult to imitate or manipulate. The individual will not lose, damage, or forget to bring them to an identity verification session, and they are quick and simple to process.

Many online and in-person ID verification solutions make use of biometrics. Fingerprint scanning pads, retina or iris scanners, palm readers, and facial recognition software can all generate extremely precise results in a short period of time.

Biometrics can also be used to authenticate pictures and selfies submitted by individuals for remote ID verification. The method is also quite successful for assessing biometric ID documents and passports.

 

Importance of ID document verification

ID document verification allows customers’ ID documents to be confirmed digitally and in real time, whether the user is in-branch or distant. Financial services businesses benefit from technology that speeds up bank account opening, onboarding, lending, and financing while protecting against fraud and lowering abandonment rates in their digital and online banking channels.

Organisations that verify their users’ identities can greatly reduce the danger of impersonation and unlawful access. Authentication and fraud prevention foster confidence and reassure users that their identities and personal information are secure with the service provider. 

Identity verification is essential for meeting regulatory obligations such as Know Your Customer (KYC) guidelines and Anti-Money Laundering (AML) laws.

These regulations require financial organisations to use due care in authenticating their clients’ identities in order to avoid fraud, corruption, money laundering, and terrorist financing.

If properly done, digital identity verification is on par with physical verification and, in most situations, faster.

-Tighter security: This is especially true when using a two-factor or multifactor authentication.
-Physical presence isn’t required: Simply said, it’s done online.
-Reduced chance of human error: Unlike with people, little passes through identity verification software.
-Improved customer experience: To reduce abandonment rates and simplify the account opening process, digital identity verification services are designed to be quick and easy.

 

The Future of Identity Verification 

The digital identity verification market is shifting towards biometrics as the major method of verification, which provides a high level of security while reducing the requirement for a physical ID.

Traveling without a physical passport, buying without a credit card, and renting a car without a physical driver’s license may become the new normal if digital identity verification technologies continue to advance at the same rate. Your smartphone and/or biometric features might be sufficient.

Signzy has a whole suite of tools to help with the identity verification of your customers. Our ID verification APIs include DL Verification, Optical Character Recognition (OCR), Liveness Checks, Passport Checks and more!

It is tough to predict what the future holds for digital identity verification, but one thing is certain: digital identity verification services, such as Signzy’s Digital identity verification API can help businesses.