2nd Address Boosts Trust With Onfido Identity Verification

“To register for the platform, users need only to upload a facial image and pictures of official ID. Onfido’s system can then use facial recognition technology to confirm that the images match, verifying the user’s identity.”

Onfido has another new client in the sharing economy market: 2nd Address, a kind of Airbnb for business professionals, is leveraging Onfido’s selfie-based authentication technology for customer onboarding.

The company’s platform is aimed at helping business travelers find furnished, long-term accommodations, and is active in several major cities including San Francisco, Los Angeles, Chicago, Washington, DC, Boston, and New York. As with Airbnb, the service offers a considerable level of convenience to users, but also entails sensitive issues of trust: Travelers and those offering rentals both need to know that they’re dealing with people who are who they say they are, and not potential fraudsters.

That, of course, is where Onfido’s selfie-based authentication system comes in. To register for the platform, users need only to upload a facial image and pictures of official ID. Onfido’s system can then use facial recognition technology to confirm that the images match, verifying the user’s identity.

Commenting on the solution in a statement, 2nd Address CEO Chung-Man Tam lauded both its security and its ease of use. “We chose Onfido because of their commitment to providing an easy online check-in experience for our global guests,” he said, adding later that the solution helped 2nd Address to “deliver a smooth user experience while also creating the trust and safety that’s crucial to our community.”

News of the deployment comes just a couple of weeks after Onfido’s announcement that RVShare, a trailer and motorhome sharing platform, had embraced the firm’s selfie-based authentication solution to verify its users. Other sharing economy firms that have signed on for Onfido authentication in the include Zipcar, Europcar, Couchsurfing, and Scoot.

(Originally posted on Mobile ID World)