Facebook has purchased biometric ID verification startup Confirm, which specialises in remotely verifying IDs like drivers licenses.
The Boston-based startup offers an application programming interface (API) that helps verify government-issued identification cards. Facebook didn’t reveal any of the financial details of the deal but the aqucsition is expected to be part of its efforts to minimise the presence of fake profiles on its platform. The social media giant could use Confirm’s technology to confirm identities of people if they get locked out of their accounts.
Confirm said in a statement: “We’re excited to announce that we have agreed to be acquired by Facebook! This is the culmination of three years of hard work building technology that will keep people safe and secure online.
“When we launched Confirm, our mission was to become the market’s trusted identity origination platform for which other multifactor verification services can build upon. Now, we’re ready to take the next step on our journey with Facebook. However, in the meantime this means all of our current digital ID authentication software offerings will be wound down.
Founded in 2015, Confirm.io previously raised at least $4m from investors, including Cava Capital, Zelkova Ventures, and Rho Ventures. Its 2015 seed round funded advanced forensics used to pull information from an ID card, as well as mobile biometrics and facial recognition.
Earlier this year, bank access API provider and money transfer system, Dwolla, announced it is powering identity verification and money transfers for Tanda, Yahoo!’s new social savings app. Using Dwolla’s API, the app will connect to the user’s bank to move money, store funds, validate their identity, and verify their bank account.
RegTech startup Velix.ID, which is using blockchain to enable frictionless identity verification, also announced plans for a token sale. Velix claims to allow for a seamless exchange of verified identities between businesses & organizations near-instantly, with the explicit consent of the user, that can be obtained in real-time.
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