Congress Begins Investigation into Face Verification Vendor ID.me

In a letter, the House Committee on Oversight and Reform requested detailed documents from ID.me, a company that uses facial recognition technology for identity verification. The Committee’s letter highlighted “serious concerns about the efficacy, privacy, and security of ID.me’s technology” including denial of government benefits because of ID.me’s software and long wait times for verification. The Committee is looking for records detailing all of ID.me’s federal, state, and local contracts, the number of people who submitted face scans to ID.me, the number of facial recognition errors, and information on the company’s use of 1:many facial recognition technology.

Recently, an EPIC-led coalition of privacy and civil liberties groups urged federal and state agencies to end the use of ID.me and other face verification services. IRS dropped its plan to use ID.me after criticism from members of Congress, EPIC, and many others. The company came under fire for forcing individuals to submit to intrusive facial recognition identity verification, subjecting people to long wait times for verification, and misleading the public. Individuals can join organizations pushing back against the use of face verification by signing this petition to Dump ID.me.