Article 5 min

How to get accurate, automated address verification for Proof of Address — UtilityID

UtilityID - accurate, automated address verification

One of the most potent identity verification data points is an address. After all, real people generally have a real-world place of residence that receives mail and services. Verifying that a person with that name matches a specified address is a powerful corroboration of Proof of Address or Proof of Residence.

But verifying an address accurately and quickly is not easy. People move. There are different address formats, making it challenging to match digitally. Some solutions rely on scanning documents, but these documents require manual verification, as there is no certifiable template for all the different valid address providers. The result is slow and frustrating customer onboarding with costly and cumbersome processing for organizations.

As part of a major product update to GlobalGateway, Trulioo now offers UtilityID. This accurate, automated address verification delivers Proof of Address in seconds without manual review or requiring customers to upload documents.

The update also includes the launch of enhanced GlobalGateway Watchlist and upgraded Business Verification. Together, these services streamline the onboarding of consumers and businesses, and provide continuous monitoring for fraud, money laundering and illicit behavior throughout the customer lifecycle.

Proof of Address

Proof of Address is evidence that a person has an actual physical address that matches their stated address. The real address needs to exist and there must be supporting evidence that the person currently resides there.

Depending on the use case, Proof of Address can:

  • Add a risk-mitigation layer
    Verifying a person receives services at an address that matches information acquired through identity proofing provides more evidence that the person exists and is who they say they are.
  • Validate eligibility for services
    Accessing certain services might require providing evidence that a person currently lives in a specific area and has maintained a residence there for a prescribed time. This Proof of Residence is often used to attain government services.
  • Limit service access
    Enable services to provide global access but with geographical restrictions.

There are several ways to provide location evidence, including a proof of residency letter (Affidavit of Residence). However, the most common way to help prove location is by giving documents that indicate the address, the dates of service and the person’s name on the account.

Document Verification solutions allow a person to take a photo of an address document and submit it for Proof of Address verification. The person has to find an appropriate document and take a photo so that the necessary information is visible. If the lighting is off or the picture cuts off important information, the person will need to retake and resubmit their scan. While better than having to find a document scanner, the process is a point of friction for customers.

The verification process on the receiving end is even more cumbersome. There can be thousands of different document types, as there is no standard format, so slow, costly manual processes are necessary to verify the information. And, with so many types, creating falsified or forged documents that pass verification scrutiny is not unduly complex.

While not without its benefits, document verification is problematic for being a fast, accurate Proof of Address solution.

Introducing UtilityID

UtilityID is a consent-based identity verification service that uses utility provider data (bills and records) to verify addresses, removing the need for manual download, upload and scan of documents and other high-friction document verification processes.

Trulioo customers can meet Proof of Address compliance requirements in real-time, providing a faster onboarding experience. UtilityID reduces onboarding times from hours (or even days) to minutes, decreasing customer friction and the risk of drop off during the sign-up process.

As UtilityID is an automated process and uses the most accurate and up-to-date method – utility bills – it provides a higher address accuracy level than other solutions. The benefits include:

  • Reducing address fraud
    Lessen the risk of onboarding non-compliant or fraudulent customers.
  • Significantly contracting operation times associated with manual document review
    These high-friction and high-touch methods are high-cost processes that ultimately burden the user and risk their complete attrition from the onboarding process.

By providing an easy-to-integrate alternative to manual document verification for Proof of Address compliance, UtilityID can remove the issues associated with ID document verification, namely; risk of manual review, high friction and intrusiveness, and higher cost per verification.

Here’s how we verify Proof of Address.

Seamless integration and workflows

Provided via the same API as all other Trulioo services, UtilityID is an easy integration, and offers you complete control over your users onboarding journey. UtilityID is seamless for your team to add to your workflows and seamless for your customers to sign up for your services.

The service already connects directly to over 2200 utility providers, currently supporting countries throughout North America, Europe, the Asia-Pacific and Latin America at significant population levels.

UtilityID is a unique, easy-to-integrate alternative to manual document verification for Proof of Address. This new method of verification significantly reduces friction, fraud, drop-off and cost in the onboarding process – all while ensuring a higher level of address accuracy and compliance.