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Comment by Animats | Hacker News Reader

Their authentication check doesn't do much. They aren't validating drivers licenses against a database. Has anybody tested this thing with common fake IDs? If you show it a color copy of a driver's license, can it detect that? How? They're looking only at a flat photo. They can't tell a hologram from a photo of a hologram. They don't make you take pictures from several different angles. You could probably take a picture of an ID, alter it in Photoshop, and get it through this thing.

Their privacy policy looks like a standard web site privacy policy. It says nothing about how they handle ID data. That's a big deal, because Confirm is handling personal data that isn't about Confirm's own customers. This can create liability for Confirm or Confirm's customers under various identity theft laws.

Here's their founder: [1]

[1] https://www.linkedin.com/in/kylekilcoyne

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Most quality fake IDs are designed to pass scanning checks like these -- it's only really a barrier to very low quality ones.

Source: I went to high school

There are actually valid driver's licenses in the US without holograms. They are usually temporary IDs valid for 3 months or so.

The one I had when I moved was printed on a very low quality inkjet printer... it looks more fake than a fake ID, but it is a legal, US government issued ID.

I just got my NYS license renewed. I was able to do it online, and it gave me a PDF to print myself.

Same. It actually takes them about a month to mail the plasticy version. I find it odd since I used to get the plasticy version while I was there at the DMV, but I figured it was probably more expensive to have one of those machines at all the DMVs, rather than just having a few in select locations.

At least in my state, they moved them to a 'secure' facility as part of all of the post 9/11 crap.

Part of the Real ID program is physical security and internal controls at printing facilities beyond what DMV branch offices are generally capable of, as well as printing processes that require $300k+ of specialized equipment.

The best route to a fake ID was previously to bribe a DMV clerk to use the printer after hours. Those fakes were basically undetectable by physical inspection.

Very few convincing fakes (that are caught) are built to modern standards. Fake ID makers almost always imitate designs from before the institution of Real ID.

I get the point of that, but doesn't that make it easy to "fake" a temp one because the temporary ones are really just printed on a poor inkjet printer?

The piece of paper they give you at the DMV will work in a traffic stop, and maybe for voting (not doing so is a civil rights lawsuit waiting to happen) but is unlikely to be accepted anywhere else.

Most organizations would rather see your slightly expired card, demand a second factor, or just refuse service rather than trust a piece of printer paper. You're definitely not getting into a bar with a temporary ID if you look plausibly underage, or the kids would be doing that already.

I had two recently (renewed, then moved states). I've been able to use my temp ID at several bars & also to redeem tickets at an event. Sometimes they looked a little unsure for a moment, but they shrugged and went on with it.

FWIW, my understanding is that their competitor IDNow (based in Germany) requires you to "wriggle" the ID a bit while you're holding it in front of the smartphone camera, while the flash light is forced on. They claim that they can then detect holograms and/or the three-dimensional structure of the plastic lamination of the ID, distinguishing it from a copy/photo/printout.

IDnow takes video and audio while the user shows their face and ID. It's not fully automatic; a person in a call center is involved.[1] The video shows the "wriggling" of the ID.

They claim to be approved by the German Federal Financial Supervisory Agency. Big banks use their services to authenticate account holders.

[1] https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mL_WQ0hkq1k

Most people would be surprised to learn how drivers license numbers work... http://www.highprogrammer.com/cgi-bin/uniqueid/dl_md

Doesn't matter. First you get the position, then you improve the product. I see this being used across the US within months.

If that's a euphemistic way to say "sell a product that doesn't work and hope you can make it work before anyone notices", you're talking about a fundamentally dishonest business practice.

See also: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/ADE_651, Theranos, etc.

a fundamentally dishonest business practice

So what?

Airbnb is exactly that, violating countless zoning laws throughout the known universe. And yet, at a recent $30 billion, it's one of the most richly valued unicorns.

We're living in a world that has little use for "honest" business practices.

A more honest statement would be: "We're living in a world where rich investors have little use for honest business practices". The communities these businesses operate in have to bear the true costs of the business practices of companies like AirBnB

I agree. I like your version better than mine.

This is a B2B service, and being a scumbag does not work for long in the B2B space.

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