Online Document Verification: Working, Advantages, And Disadvantages
Identity theft is a growing problem for businesses, consumers, and governments. As organizations and businesses are looking for authentic ways to combat scams, particularly with the data violation emerging, one system that got popular is using online document verification to check individuals’ identities.
ID document verification helps your potential clients to verify their details over the internet instead of in-branch, in-store, or in person. It enables any organization to meet legal obligations including Counter-Terrorism Financing and Anti-Money Laundering.
Identity Verification vs Identity Authentication
Identity verification is done by presenting the driver’s license physically or entering personal information like name, social security number, and address on the online application form.
The credentials are visually verified if presented physically or checked against the authentic data source if presented online. For many years, this method is trusted as it is successful in combating different scams.
However, now the scammers have access to the technology which they easily use to create fake IDs that seem like the original. Also, data violations have made it easier for criminals to steal anyone’s personal information as well as trick the anti-fraud system.
While identity authentication prevents fraud in online transactions effectively. KBA does not only provide useful information required for identity verification purposes but is also used in the form of those questions that only the real individual knows the answers to.
Such questions are known as out-of-wallet questions as they need the information that is not present on the verification documents such as past loan payments, family members’ names, past home addresses, or employers. Although this additional layer offers greater protection to businesses and consumers, it’s also becoming susceptible to identity thieves as is the case with IRS data violation.
Documents Verification Process
The customer whose document verification is going to be done is asked to hold their documents in front of the smartphone or web to scan their relevant information. As the image is received, it is evaluated by the software to check the authenticity of the documents.
In a few cases, that image is also manually verified by the document experts to check forgeries. There is an additional choice for the person to give a live image capturing of their face so that it can be matched against the photo that is present on the document.
This is how to verify documents online, or how companies verify documents and declare them as verified or unverified identities.
Advantages of Online Document Verification
In today’s world, where document frauds have become so common, document checks
come as a solution to identify and combat all types of fraudsters. Here is how online document verification is helping platforms to keep all the criminals at bay.
Quick Turnaround Time
Despite dropping your identity documents physically or sending them through an email and then waiting for so long to get their authenticity verified physically, online document verification systems can quickly verify the identity documents submitted electronically.
Easy to Use
Using the latest document verification solution, checking anyone’s individual identity has become as simple as giving the digital image of the identity document like a passport or driver’s license. You can do this in person by using a web camera or you can send a photo captured by your cell phone remotely.
Disadvantages of Online Document Verification
Here are some of the disadvantages of verifying your documents online.
Identity Information is Not Verified
As the document verification systems only verify the authenticity of any individual’s documents. The important identity information like the individual’s complete name, date of birth, and home address is not verified, there’s the probability that someone who has a fake identity document would pass the identity verification system that just uses the document verification.
As we know online document verification has its benefits, but one should not merely rely on it for verifying identities. In countries like Australia, New Zealand, and the United Kingdom, the rules are quite clear that to verify identities, more than one independent source should be used and that would be considered a reliable identity verification. Using multiple sources would help prevent the fraudsters who’ve stolen one set of credentials by completing their transactions.
Not Always Reliable
There is no doubt that document verification is a good solution to avoid fraud but it’s not foolproof. As technology is advancing, so do document fraud techniques.
As a result of which, criminals are becoming smarter and more successful in fooling even experienced personnel at the borders.
The document verification system only checks whether the document is legitimate or not.
Final Thoughts
As you know scammers are everywhere but nothing to worry about as you have online document verification systems. And to find the best system to avoid identity fraud, try to implement a combination of such systems instead of only one.
