Think Digital Partners meets iProov

Hello Aarti, can you please give us a brief history of iProov?

iProov is a world leading provider of biometric authentication services to governments, financial institutions, healthcare, travel operators and more. The company was founded in 2012 when Andrew Bud CBE, had the big idea to make the internet a safer place: you need to assure an online user is genuinely present. Since then we have been granted 19 patents, work with leaders and innovators, and are growing our partnerships to offer facial biometric authentication services to the most security conscious governments and enterprises across the globe.

And what does actually iProov do?

iProov assures Genuine Presence, meaning we make sure that the user is the right person, a real person, and is authenticating right now. We do this using face biometrics because it can then be linked to a trusted government issued ID document and is contactless by default!

iProov’s Face verification technology can be used on personal mobile devices, laptops or kiosks, to onboard or authenticate for various services. Its design is user-centric, which is accessible and inclusive. We ensure that the experience is effortless, where the user is aware that verification is taking place and they are directly benefiting from the process. User privacy is protected at all times with the concept of iProov Privacy Firewall.

This is not to be confused with face recognition, where an individual’s face is scanned unknown to them, there is no direct benefit to the individual and they have no control over their privacy. iProov does not do face recognition. 

Can you give us some more detail about your technology and what it offers?

iProov’s patented Flashmark technology illuminates the user’s face with a unique sequence of colours from the device screen, which is accompanied by a cryptographic code. This combination of colors and the code, creates a one-time biometric. If intercepted, stolen, recorded or reproduced by deepfake, the imagery is useless, protecting individuals from the most dangerous spoof attacks. It has been tested by governments, banks and other enterprises, and has shown to deliver far stronger security than any other alternative.

Our deep learning technology detects evolving spoof attacks and protects our customers from ever-growing cyber threats.  Our products offer high levels of assurance that the person attempting to onboard or access a secure account is legitimate, and not a criminal. Especially for governments and financial institutions, iProov is used for onboarding to help comply with KYC and AML checks, and for ongoing authentication to reduce the risk of account takeover or hijacking.

Alongside increased security for businesses and users, iProov offers a simple interface which does not create unnecessary friction in the customer journey. Users simply line up their face, and within a couple of seconds the authentication is complete. There is no need to touch your nose, or say a phrase to prove that you are a human – our technology does the work for you.

And have you got any example of public sector application where iProov has been deployed at scale.

iProov technology was implemented to verify users signing up to NHS login to access digital health services. Since launch, over 1 million users have been verified, with a peak of 60,000 verifications in the first week of April. Read more about it here.

iProov was also a key partner in the Home Office EU Settled Status app, enabling EEA nationals to apply for settled status remotely in under 10 minutes. They just needed to prove their identity, show they live in the UK, and declare any criminal convictions. iProov worked with our key partners, WorldReach Software and InnoValor to deliver a scalable, secure and usable solution. Over 4 million EEA nationals have completed their application successfully, with peaks of 25,000-30,000 applications per day supported successfully. Read more about the success of the EUSS app here.

Most recently, we announced our work with the Singapore Government, iProov face verification is now part of their national digital identity programme, and has been integrated into the SingPass app to enable 4 million citizens to register and access over 500 digital services from 180 government agencies.

What are the risks to governments using face verification and what should we look out for?

The recent pandemic has radically accelerated the digitisation of services, both in the public and private sector. As a result, cyber criminals are investing in sophisticated and scalable attacks on vulnerable citizens and organisations. For example, digitally injected deepfake images or videos, which are lifelike, can fool even a highly trained human into believing they are genuine. As larger segments of populations are adopting digital channels to access secure services, it is critical for governments and private businesses to ensure their authentication methods are of the highest security, but without making the process onerous for the citizen. Authentication of remote users will see large growth and a focus from digital transformation teams, and there are several key considerations to ensure a solution protects the citizen from these growing risks.

We are also pleased to have iProov as one of our sponsors at this weeks Think Digital Identity for Government virtual event.

Yes, delegates can find out more about iProov’s key learnings from deploying face verification in government programs, during our session at the virtual event on 12 November.