Frequently Asked Questions

General

What is Universal Verify?

Universal Verify is a platform that provides real human verification through government-issued ID checks. Once a user is verified on Universal Verify, any integrated platform can trust that verification without needing to re-verify the user.

How are users verified?

Users are verified by a combination of AI and human review. We leverage public and government data sources to verify the ID information. There are three confidence levels for user verification:

  • 1 - the ID and human appear valid
  • 2 - the ID and human appear valid and the user's information is consistent with public records
  • 3 - the ID and human appear valid and the user's information is consistent with government records

Who can integrate with Universal Verify?

Any website, app, or service that needs to verify users—such as social platforms, marketplaces, age-restricted communities, or bot-sensitive services.

What types of data can I receive?

With user consent, you can access verified data such as legal name, age (in years), date of birth, country/state of ID, and verification status.

Can I choose which data I request?

Yes. You specify the scopes you need during integration. Only data with user consent will be shared.

Technical

How do I integrate Universal Verify?

After creating an account and adding an integration for your app, use our SDKs to initiate OAuth flows from your frontend and backend. Our Quick Start Guide walks you through the setup.

How do I verify that a user has completed ID verification?

When a user who has already completed ID verification connects to your platform, their verification status will be reflected immediately when you request their information via the API. For users who haven't yet verified, you can configure a webhook to receive real-time updates when their status changes. Alternatively, you can require users to complete verification before they're allowed to connect to your platform.

Can I test my integration before going live?

We are hoping to launch a test mode this year. In the meantime, you can create a seperate integration for testing purposes.

Do you support webhooks?

Yes. You can subscribe to receive webhooks for verification updates. We will support more webhooks in the near future, including user info updates and revoked access to various scopes or their entire account.

How often should I re-check a user's verification status?

While webhooks are the most reliable, you may also call the API periodically. Note: we do not require users to reverify after ID expiry at this time.

Billing & Pricing

How is pricing determined?

Pricing is based on Monthly Active Users (MAU), with a flat monthly fee that includes a set number of users. If you exceed that limit, you'll be charged for each additional block of MAU. You're only charged for users whose verification information you request or receive updates for, but a minimum monthly fee applies even if no users are active.

Are there hidden fees?

No. Our pricing is transparent with optional overage pricing based on usage tiers.

Can I limit the number of MAU I'm charged for?

Yes. You can set a limit on the maximum amount of MAU you're charged for in your account settings.

My current MAU exceeded the limit I set. What happens?

No need to worry. We'll only charge you for the amount of MAU up to your limit. Enjoy the extra free users!

Do I pay for users who connect but aren't verified?

Yes, but you can configure your integration to require verification before users can connect to avoid those charges.

Legal & Compliance

Is Universal Verify GDPR compliant?

Yes. We provide GDPR-compliant ID verification and enforce strict data minimization. Once you receive data, you're responsible for compliance on your end.

What are my obligations as a partner?

You must handle sensitive data securely, comply with data residency laws, and delete user data upon request or account deletion.

Do you provide audit logs or data retention policies?

Universal Verify stores access logs for up to 10 years for auditing purposes, but does not expose them via the partner UI. You must implement your own logging and retention strategies in line with your legal obligations.

User Experience

How does a user connect their verified identity to my platform?

Users are redirected to Universal Verify from your website to log in and consent to share data with your service. After approval, they're redirected back to your platform.

What happens if a user deletes their Universal Verify account?

You will no longer have access to that user. In the near future, you'll be able to configure a webhook to receive notifications when a user revokes access from your integration, either manually or by having deleted their account.

Can a user have multiple accounts on Universal Verify?

No. Our system is designed to ensure each person has only one verified identity, helping prevent duplicate or fraudulent accounts. Even if a user deletes their account, they cannot verify a new account with the same identity.

For compliance purposes we do allow users to verify a new account 10 years after they've deleted their old one.