Protect Your Business from Identity Fraud: Best Practices for Signer Identity Verification

In today's digital age, identity fraud poses a significant risk to businesses, especially in highly regulated industries like banking and finance. The statistics are alarming: identity theft affects 23.9 million victims annually, and the cost of identity-related exploits is estimated at a staggering $351 billion. For banks, the impact is even more pronounced, with an additional $4 spent on mitigation for every $1 lost to fraud.

Understanding the Threat

Identity fraud is not just a financial burden; it undermines trust and can lead to severe regulatory repercussions. At SIGNiX, we are dedicated to helping you protect your business and customers from these threats through robust signer authentication methods. Whether it's basic verification using one time passwords via SMS or advanced biometric solutions, our offerings are designed to significantly reduce your risk exposure.

Choosing the Right Verification Method

Selecting the appropriate identity verification method is crucial. While any verification is better than none, higher-assurance methods are often necessary to prevent fraud effectively.

Here are some best practices to guide your choice:

• Assess the Risk: Consider the potential impact if the signer isn't who they claim to be.
• Evaluate Frequency: How often do you conduct these types of transactions?
• Check Compliance Requirements: Are there specific requirements for your state or industry?

Based on these factors, you can match the authentication method to the risk level:

• Low risk: Email authentication
• Known parties: SMS authentication
• Medium risk: Knowledge-Based Authentication (KBA) with credential analysis
• High risk: ID Verify (biometrics + credential analysis)

When in doubt, it's always better to err on the side of caution and use a higher-assurance method.

Introducing ID Verify: The Gold Standard in Authentication

For your most sensitive transactions, such as high-value loans, asset transfers, and critical legal documents, our ID Verify offers the highest level of assurance. This method combines two powerful technologies:

• Credential Analysis: Verification of a government-issued ID to ensure its authenticity.
  
• Facial Biometric Authentication: A "selfie check" that matches the signer's face with the photo on their ID.
  
  

By integrating ID Verify into your workflow, you can significantly reduce the risk of fraud, meet and exceed regulatory requirements, and enhance trust with your clients and partners.

Implementing Verification Best Practices

To effectively implement these verification practices in your organization, follow this simple action plan:

• Review Document Types: Assess the risk levels of your current document types.

• Match Verification Methods: Assign the appropriate verification method to each document type and prior knowledge of signers:

  • Low risk: Email authentication
  • Known parties: SMS authentication
  • Medium risk: KBA with credential analysis
  • High risk: ID Verify
  • Update Settings: Configure your SIGNiX settings to reflect these choices.
  • Train Your Team: Ensure your team is familiar with the new procedures.
  • Monitor and Adjust: Continuously monitor the effectiveness and make adjustments as needed.

For your most sensitive documents, especially if signed by unknown parties, ID Verify offers unparalleled assurance, significantly reducing your risk exposure.

Enhancing the security and validity of your documents doesn't have to be a daunting task. Our team at SIGNiX is here to help you implement these best practices and set up ID Verify for your higher-risk transactions while remaining convenient enough to limit dropoffs.