Non-Document Verification

Verify identities without requiring physical ID documents by checking against authoritative databases, credit bureaus, electoral rolls, and public records.

Why Non-Document Verification?

Use Cases:

• Customers without valid ID documents
• Lower-risk transactions
• Faster onboarding (no document upload required)
• Markets with low ID document ownership
• Age verification for digital services

1 Credit Per non-document verification

Verification Methods

1. Credit Bureau Checks

Verify identity against credit reference agency data.

What We Check:

• Name and address on credit file
• Date of birth confirmation
• Electoral roll registration
• Credit file existence (without credit score)
• Historical address matches

Supported Countries:

• UK (Experian, Equifax, TransUnion)
• US (Experian, Equifax, TransUnion)
• Canada (Equifax, TransUnion)
• Australia (Equifax, Illion, Experian)
• EU (country-specific bureaus)

Credit Check Example:

const verification = await fetch('/api/v3/verifications', {
  method: 'POST',
  body: JSON.stringify({
    applicantId: 'app_abc123',
    type: 'non_document',
    method: 'credit_bureau',
    data: {
      firstName: 'John',
      lastName: 'Smith',
      dateOfBirth: '1985-06-15',
      address: {
        line1: '123 High Street',
        city: 'London',
        postcode: 'SW1A 1AA',
        country: 'GB'
      }
    }
  })
});

Match Result:

{
  "status": "completed",
  "result": "verified",
  "matches": {
    "name": true,
    "dob": true,
    "address": true,
    "electoralRoll": true
  },
  "confidence": 95
}

2. Electoral Roll Verification

Check name and address against electoral register.

Coverage: UK, Ireland, some EU countries

What We Check:

• Current registration at given address
• Historical registrations
• Name match
• Date of birth (where available)

Limitations:

• Not everyone registers to vote
• Updates can lag (annual refresh)
• Variations in name format

3. Phone Number Validation

Verify phone number ownership and carrier data.

What We Check:

• Phone number is active
• Carrier information
• Number type (mobile vs. landline)
• Country and region
• Age of number registration

Validation Example:

const phoneCheck = await fetch('/api/v3/phone/verify', {
  method: 'POST',
  body: JSON.stringify({
    phoneNumber: '+447700900123',
    applicantId: 'app_abc123'
  })
});

Result:

{
  "valid": true,
  "carrier": "Vodafone UK",
  "lineType": "mobile",
  "country": "GB",
  "registrationAge": "3+ years"
}

4. Email Validation

Verify email address validity and risk.

What We Check:

• Email format validity
• Domain existence
• MX record validation
• Disposable email detection
• Email reputation score
• Domain age

Risk Indicators:

• Temporary/disposable email (high risk)
• Free email provider (medium risk)
• Recently created domain (medium risk)
• Corporate domain (low risk)
• Aged email domain (low risk)

5. Address Verification

Confirm address exists and is residential.

What We Check:

• Address format validation
• Post office database lookup
• Address type (residential vs. commercial)
• Occupancy status

Supported Countries: 50+ with postal authority data

Multi-Method Verification

Combine multiple checks for higher confidence:

const verification = await fetch('/api/v3/verifications', {
  method: 'POST',
  body: JSON.stringify({
    applicantId: 'app_abc123',
    type: 'non_document',
    methods: ['credit_bureau', 'phone', 'email', 'address'],
    requiredMatches: 3 // Pass if 3 out of 4 methods succeed
  })
});

Confidence Scoring:

Knowledge-Based Authentication (KBA)

Challenge users with questions based on their credit history or public records.

How It Works:

1. System generates 3-5 multiple-choice questions
2. User answers questions
3. Answers validated against credit bureau data

Question Examples:

• "Which of these addresses did you live at in 2018?"
• "What is the name of your mortgage provider?"
• "In what year did you open your current account?"

KBA Request:

const kba = await fetch('/api/v3/verifications/kba/generate', {
  method: 'POST',
  body: JSON.stringify({
    applicantId: 'app_abc123',
    questionsCount: 4
  })
});

KBA Response:

{
  "kbaId": "kba_xyz789",
  "questions": [
    {
      "id": "q1",
      "question": "Which of these addresses did you live at in 2019?",
      "options": [
        "123 High Street, London",
        "45 Park Lane, Manchester",
        "78 Oak Road, Birmingham",
        "None of the above"
      ]
    }
    // ... more questions
  ]
}

Submit Answers:

await fetch(`/api/v3/verifications/kba/${kbaId}/submit`, {
  method: 'POST',
  body: JSON.stringify({
    answers: {
      q1: "123 High Street, London",
      q2: "HSBC",
      // ...
    }
  })
});

Pass Criteria: 3 out of 4 correct = Pass

1 Credit For KBA (includes question generation + validation)

Country-Specific Methods

United Kingdom

Available Methods:

• Credit bureau checks (Experian, Equifax, TransUnion)
• Electoral roll verification
• DVLA driving license check
• NHS number validation
• Bank account validation (sort code + account number)

United States

Available Methods:

• SSN validation (last 4 digits)
• Credit bureau checks
• Phone number carrier lookup
• Address verification via USPS
• KBA via credit history

European Union

Available Methods:

• National ID number validation
• Tax ID (VAT) validation
• Bank account IBAN validation
• Phone number validation
• Address verification via postal authorities

Rest of World

Coverage varies by country. Contact support for specific country availability.

Risk-Based Decisioning

Configure automated decisions based on verification results:

{
  "rules": {
    "autoApprove": {
      "confidence": ">= 90",
      "methodsPassed": ">= 3"
    },
    "manualReview": {
      "confidence": "60-89",
      "methodsPassed": ">= 2"
    },
    "autoReject": {
      "confidence": "< 60",
      "methodsPassed": "< 2"
    }
  }
}

Compliance Considerations

GDPR (EU)

Non-document verification involving credit checks requires:

• Explicit user consent
• Clear privacy notice
• Right to access results
• Data retention limits

FCRA (US)

Credit bureau checks must comply with Fair Credit Reporting Act:

• Permissible purpose
• User consent
• Adverse action notices if rejected

Data Minimization

Only collect data necessary for verification:

• Don't pull full credit report (just identity match)
• Don't store unnecessary personal information
• Delete verification data after retention period

Best Practices

1. Use for low-risk scenarios - Non-document best for small transactions, age verification
2. Combine multiple methods - Don't rely on single data source
3. Have document fallback - If non-document fails, request ID document
4. Set appropriate thresholds - Higher confidence for higher-risk transactions
5. Regular re-verification - For ongoing relationships, re-verify periodically
6. Clear user communication - Explain why you're checking credit bureau, etc.

Limitations

Accuracy:

• Credit bureau: 85-95% (depends on data quality)
• Phone validation: 80-90%
• Email validation: 95%+
• Address verification: 90%+

Coverage:

• Not all individuals in credit bureau databases
• Young people (no credit history)
• Recent immigrants
• People without bank accounts

Speed: 2-10 seconds (depends on bureau response time)

Cost Comparison

API Reference

Create Non-Document Verification

POST /api/v3/verifications
 
{
  "applicantId": "app_abc123",
  "type": "non_document",
  "methods": ["credit_bureau", "phone", "email"],
  "data": {
    "firstName": "John",
    "lastName": "Smith",
    "dateOfBirth": "1985-06-15",
    "phone": "+447700900123",
    "email": "[email protected]",
    "address": {
      "line1": "123 High Street",
      "city": "London",
      "postcode": "SW1A 1AA",
      "country": "GB"
    }
  }
}

Get Verification Results

GET /api/v3/verifications/:id
 
{
  "id": "ver_xyz789",
  "status": "completed",
  "result": "verified",
  "confidence": 92,
  "methods": {
    "credit_bureau": { "passed": true, "score": 95 },
    "phone": { "passed": true, "score": 88 },
    "email": { "passed": true, "score": 92 }
  },
  "recommendation": "approve"
}

Next Steps