October 30, 2022
Happy Sunday, everyone!
The most often heard comment I hear about remote online notarization is about fraud. Am I scared that people are not who they say they are? How do I know the signer is legit?
There are four different types of identity verification. The first one is knowledge based authentication (KBA). This is where questions are sent to the signer (usually via email) that are pulled from public records. These are facts that only you would know the answer to quickly--the KBA quiz usually has to be done in a matter of minutes--sometimes under 2 minutes! Multiple choice questions might be--What was the house number of the house you lived on Wayne Dr.? or What color was the Toyota Camry you owned in 1997?
The second type of identity verification is called biometrics. This is not an option for every notary as it is not allowed in every state. I am allowed to offer this in Virginia. This is great for people who may not have lived in the USA long enough to have enough data to pull questions from public records. Maybe the signer only lived here for college, or was only here temporarily for a job. For this process, you upload your ID and then take a selfie. The computer analyzes your ID to make sure that it's valid. Then the program compares the photo in your ID to your selfie.
The third type of identity verification is a credible witness. This is someone who is willing to swear under oath as to the signer's identity. This is useful if an elderly relative no longer has a valid ID. This has become all to prevalent as we come out of the pandemic. For so long the Dept. of Motor Vehicles were closed, or limited to appointment only. Some elderly people did not feel safe venturing out...expired IDs are more common now than ever. In a virtual notary appointment the video is recorded, so there is evidence to who appeared before the notary. This alone helps prevent fraud and a "he said/she said" scenario. Please note, that not all notaries are allowed to offer a credible witness with a remote online notarization.
A quick side note--"personal knowledge" is also another way to identify a signer. This is not something I would be willing to use very often online.
Here is a video from the NNA that also describes the process:
I hope this info calms any hesitation you may have about remote online (virtual) notarization.
Blessings,
Rose
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