Balancing Speed and Accuracy in ID Verification

The Modern Identity Landscape: Complexity Meets Opportunity

Originally rooted in regulatory compliance, identity verification has evolved. Today, it encompasses multiple layers, including traditional Personally Identifiable Information (PII) checks, digital identity signals, email and phone linkages, document authentication and behavioural analytics. But as consumers shift their interactions to digital channels, fraudsters are adapting just as quickly - leveraging synthetic identities, deepfakes and data manipulation to exploit verification gaps.

For many organizations, the real challenge lies in verifying more good customers confidently without increasing risk exposure.

Too often, organizations chase verification rate lifts without recognizing what they're sacrificing in fraud detection. InstantID® was enhanced specifically to avoid that trade-off.

Enhancements That Drive Results - Securely

Recent enhancements to InstantID are already delivering tangible improvements:

• 6 - 8% lift in verification rates for highly verified identities.
• Up to 10% improvement in verifying young adults.
• 30% increase in phone verification accuracy for this demographic.
• 8% increase in address verification among young adults.

This uplift is achieved through:

• Expanded data coverage, including 30% more high-quality, rapidly updated records.
• Inclusion of new content sources, such as student registry and transactional data.
• Enriched logic, integrating recency and velocity indicators to filter out suspicious patterns like address crowding and PII tumbling.

These innovations ensure that InstantID does more than simply validate data, it assesses the authenticity and integrity of identity claims using authoritative reference sources and anomaly detection.

Precision Matters: Why It’s About More Than Match Rates

You could potentially verify 100% of identities, but that doesn't mean you should. Many fraudulent identities are technically ‘verifiable’ using basic checks, particularly those crafted using stolen or synthetic data. InstantID combats this by scrutinizing velocity patterns, address inconsistencies and anomalous identity reuse, flagging potentially risky profiles even when surface-level information appears sound.

Also, InstantID doesn't operate in a vacuum. It integrates seamlessly with fraud detection strategies, helping organizations align verification and risk assessment without conflating the two.

Fraud detection and verification are technically distinct - but deeply interconnected. Missing on one can have significant downstream costs.

Looking Forward: Staying Ahead of Emerging Threats

Identity fraud is evolving rapidly, with generative AI and deepfakes raising the stakes. One in four financial institutions already report encountering deepfake-related fraud attempts. To stay ahead, LexisNexis® Risk Solutions is actively integrating advanced document authentication and biometric verification technologies, such as those gained through its acquisition of IDVerse®, part of LexisNexis® Risk Solutions. These tools can detect subtle signs of manipulation from inconsistent facial movements to biological cues. making it harder for synthetic identities to slip through.

Additionally, machine learning is being explored to enhance decisioning in grey-area cases, allowing institutions to “approve with caution” or tailor remediation paths based on predicted verification confidence, improving customer experience without weakening defences.

A Holistic Strategy for a Fragmented World

Today’s verification challenge isn’t just about data, it’s about context. Whether onboarding a young adult applying for their first credit card or a recent mover updating personal details, InstantID offers the precision necessary to interpret each scenario accurately.

Including PII verification as part of a best-practice onboarding workflow is vital. But to do it right, you need a solution that delivers transparency, confidence and adaptability. That’s what InstantID is designed to provide.