United Kingdom
The Government Digital Service (GDS) has opened a testing environment for registered digital verification service providers to prepare for the introduction of the digital driving licence in GOV.UK Wallet.
Developed with the Department for Science, Innovation and Technology and the Driver and Vehicle Licensing Agency, the sandbox allows certified providers to test verification processes using mock driving licence credentials and synthetic data. It will help identify technical and security issues before the digital driving licence’s planned public rollout in 2027.
Providers must be independently certified against government standards and listed on the official digital verification services register to participate. The government plans a further integration event with industry later this year.
Benin, Ghana and Rwanda
Benin, Ghana and Rwanda are preparing to test cross-border digital identity verification after connecting their national identity systems through Smart Africa’s data exchange platform.
The initiative forms part of the Smart Africa Data Exchange (SADX), which aims to enable countries to verify identity credentials across borders while retaining control of their own national systems.
The proposed pilot will test whether national identity cards issued in one participating country can be verified in another, including for cross-border travel. Earlier technical discussions examined infrastructure integration, certificate trust arrangements and how verification requests would be handled between countries.
No date has yet been announced for live testing.
Europe
The European Payments Council has begun developing a common framework for accepting EU Digital Identity Wallets in payment authentication.
The initiative, known as SCARLET, will establish business, contractual and technical rules to help payment service providers accept digital wallets for Strong Customer Authentication under the EU’s digital identity framework.
With more than 3,000 payment service providers and at least 27 national wallet providers expected to participate, the European Payments Council wants to prevent incompatible implementations across the European Economic Area.
The first version of the rulebook is expected in December 2027, following public consultation next summer. A subsequent version will address requirements under the forthcoming Payment Services Regulation.
Malaysia
Malaysia plans to introduce an automated biometric identification system at its entry points in the third quarter of 2027, allowing immigration authorities to check travellers’ facial and biometric information against government databases and watchlists in real time.
The Home Ministry outlined the plans in a parliamentary response, alongside measures to expand the use of automated exit gates for foreign travellers from December.
The government is also developing a National Integrated Immigration System, including a Foreign Digital Identification System scheduled to begin with long-term pass holders on 1 November.
The changes are intended to strengthen immigration controls and reduce opportunities for manipulation of traveller records.
Ethiopia
Ethiopia’s national digital identity authority, FaydaVerse, has introduced charges for organisations using its identity authentication services, as the country’s digital ID programme continues to expand.
Fees reportedly range from five to 10 US cents per verification, with the authority saying the revenue is needed to maintain and improve the infrastructure. Registration for a national digital ID remains free for citizens, while banks and other organisations pay for authentication services.
As of 15 October, the Fayda programme had registered 52.4 million people and processed approximately 200 million identity authentication operations. It is currently handling around two million verification requests daily.
FaydaVerse also plans to expand into digital credentials, citizen wallets and digital signing services.
United Kingdom
Many multinational businesses with UK operations remain unprepared for Companies House identity verification requirements, despite believing they are ready, according to research from Vistra.
A survey of 300 directors found that 84 percent considered their organisation prepared, but only nine percent reported completing verification for all relevant directors and persons with significant control. On average, respondents estimated that 61 percent had completed the process.
Only 26 percent said their organisation had checked the accuracy of its Companies House records, while 22 percent had obtained and recorded the necessary personal codes.
The findings come as the transition period following the introduction of mandatory identity verification in November 2025 approaches its end. Vistra said cross-border corporate structures were adding to the challenge, with 76 percent of respondents reporting additional compliance complexity when verifying directors and owners based outside the UK.
Germany
Germany has approved revised legislation establishing the legal basis for its planned d-you digital identity wallet, although questions remain about whether the service will meet all European Digital Identity Wallet requirements at launch.
The legislation, approved by the Bundestag, includes changes intended to address opposition concerns, including allowing users to choose whether to include a facial photograph.
However, according to German technology publication Heise, the legislation does not include an enforcement mechanism requiring electronic attribute attestations to be issued. Outstanding EU technical specifications could also mean the wallet initially falls short of full EUDI Wallet requirements.
The government continues to target 2 January 2027 for the launch of d-you.
United States
Digital identity company Prove has filed a federal lawsuit accusing rival KYXStart of infringing two patents covering identity verification and authentication technology.
The complaint, filed in the US District Court for the District of Delaware, alleges that former Prove employees used knowledge of its proprietary technology to develop competing services at KYXStart.
The disputed patents relate to methods for establishing trust between users and communications devices and protecting identity verification processes against certain forms of attack.
Prove alleges that KYXStart’s identity, payments and business verification services infringe the patents. KYXStart previously disputed the allegations through its legal representatives, according to the complaint.
United Kingdom
A new government report has highlighted continuing gaps in the accessibility and inclusivity of digital identity services certified under the UK’s Digital Verification Services trust framework.
The Inclusion monitoring report 2026, based on a survey of 44 providers with live certified services, found that 77 percent offer at least one accessibility feature, while 75 percent report meeting Web Content Accessibility Guidelines Level AA or higher.
However, among providers using biometric technology, only 49 percent offer an alternative verification route for people who do not wish to provide biometric information.
Just seven percent of providers offer vouching, where another person helps confirm someone’s identity, while 61 percent identified cost as a barrier to improving inclusion.
The government said the findings would inform further development of the trust framework, although it cautioned that the relatively small survey relies on providers’ self-reported practices.
Global
Digital identity company Ondato has partnered with Trinsic to introduce verification using European Digital Identity Wallets.
Trinsic will provide the underlying infrastructure, allowing Ondato to add wallet-based identity verification to its existing compliance and customer verification platform.
The partnership is intended to prepare regulated businesses for the introduction of EUDI Wallets across Europe, with member states required to offer at least one wallet by the end of 2026.
Ondato plans to incorporate wallet-based verification into its wider services for identity checks, risk assessment and fraud monitoring.
Global
Digital infrastructure provider hayo has launched a Number Verification API that allows mobile operators to verify phone numbers directly through their networks, without requiring users to enter one-time passcodes.
The service uses SIM and network information to confirm that a phone number is associated with the device being used. It follows CAMARA and GSMA standards and is intended to provide an alternative to SMS-based authentication, which can be vulnerable to interception and phishing.
Hayo is targeting mobile operators in Africa, the Middle East and other markets, offering the technology as a managed service that can be integrated into existing operator infrastructure.
Global
Identity verification provider 1Kosmos has been selected by US staffing company Kforce to help prevent fraudulent job candidates from gaining access to client organisations.
Kforce, which places approximately 17,000 consultants annually, said it had experienced cases where the person arriving for an assignment was not the individual interviewed and hired.
The company has introduced mobile identity verification before consultants begin assignments, using government-issued identity documents, facial matching and liveness detection to confirm that the person starting work matches the individual recruited.
Kforce said the additional checks have been incorporated into its existing compliance processes, with the deployment completed in less than six weeks.
Here are the two additional entries for this week’s roundup, bringing it to 14 stories.
Global
Digital identity company Facephi has launched an AI-powered fraud prevention platform designed to detect suspicious activity beyond the initial identity verification process.
The Facephi Intelligence Platform builds a continuously updated identity profile using information from logins, devices and user behaviour. This allows organisations to identify potentially fraudulent activity even when someone has passed an identity check or is using legitimate account credentials.
The company said the technology is intended to address increasingly sophisticated fraud, including cases where criminals gain access to accounts through social engineering or remote access to a customer’s device.
Global
Password manager NordPass has introduced an Identity Masking feature that allows users to generate alternative personal details when registering for websites and online services.
The feature creates synthetic names, addresses and email addresses that can be used for services such as newsletters, loyalty programmes and online applications where verified personal information is not required.
NordPass said the aim is to reduce unnecessary disclosure of personal information and limit exposure to data harvesting, profiling and breaches.
Identity Masking is available to Premium, Family and Business users, with the company also announcing a new ID Monitoring feature to strengthen identity protection.
