Forging the documents of the individuals has become a technique of fraudsters used frequently. Due to this, identity theft has also increased. In addition to that, fraudulent online transactions have seen a surge due to the lockdown of COVID-19. People were restricted to staying indoors which ultimately caused an increase in the number of data breaches and cybercrimes. Strict measures need to be taken in order to tackle such situations. This is the reason identity verification systems need to be established which could detect the true identity of the users. Along with advanced technologies, fake identities could be caught by checking their government-issued documents.
The Dynamic Shift from Manual to Digital Document Verification
The concept of document verification has evolved from working on long sheets of paper to now being storing personal data in a nail-size chip form. The manual process was initially used when an individual wanted to open an account or perform a transaction where the client had to provide his details through government-issued documents, such as driver’s license, passport, etc. The verification employee checks for any errors and matches the photo present on the document with the person sitting in front to make sure that the person is not an imposter and is not trying to fake someone else’s identity.
Fighting Frauds with Online Document Verification
With the technology of AI, companies conduct verifications through a remotely online document verification service. In this process, the client is asked to hold up the documents through which the required details are scanned through a webcam or a smartphone camera. Once the information is converted in an image form, it is then compared in order to check the authenticity of the documents. Next, the user uploads a selfie that is matched with the photo present on the documents in order to present the final results of verification. Businesses are now using this method by offering clients the method of online transactions conducted remotely allowing them to deal with genuine customers only.
Different Categories of Faking Documents
There are various kinds of documents frauds conducted through which scammers can fake identities:
Stolen Documents
Fraudsters stole the identity documents of someone and use them to carry out illicit crimes. Secondly, mostly these thefts are done with the documents of deceased people who had a positive image in the past.
False Documents
These are illegitimate documents that do not include any holograms, rainbow prints, or any other required legal standards for the documents.
Forged Documents
Documents are modified using such software that even experienced officers are unable to detect any errors or alterations made to the document. Checking the font, or changing the pixels is one of the common techniques used to temper the documents by cybercriminals.
The Dimensions of Online Document Authentication
In order to e-verify documents, there are certain measures through which customer onboarding can be made efficient by the usage of an online document verification portal that checks the following elements:
- The authenticity of the document is checked thoroughly to identify any false documentation.
- What format is used for each document is reviewed, so that the exact format rule can be applied to all other documents?
- The machine-readable code is evaluated to check whether it has been tempered or any alterations are made to it to check the authorization of the document.
- As the documents are made of paper which can get torn off, the document verification service provider checks for any folded edges or any crumpled edges which can halt the whole process of document verification.
- Detecting forged documents has been made easy. As it detects any minor changes made to documents that cannot be caught by the human eye.
- Usage of new ink in order to temper documents is detected automatically by the digital documentation services.
Wrapping it Up
Fraudsters are using different techniques to cause problems for the companies and their clients. Digitally verifying the documents, minimizes the error rate and ensures secure customer onboarding. To e-verify documents, the clients need a webcam or even a smartphone camera that can work and an electronic device to upload documents, while businesses check authenticity and verify true clients. With customers sharing their information with the businesses, it makes the procedure of opening an account and doing online transactions safer. As helpful as it could be for building trust and driving loyalty to the company, it can also have its own downsides. Yet, no matter what, online document verification process and services are the need of today and they should be established by the financial institutions as soon as possible.