Confirm launched a portable digital identity solution designed to bolster trust and security in online marketplaces.
Using identity protocols paired with intuitive user experiences, Confirm allows people to create a secure, verified digital ID — a ConfirmID — which they can use to prove their identity online without oversharing personal information.
Confirm was created in response to a rapidly increasing and urgent need for more trust in online interactions, and especially in peer-to-peer buying and selling networks like Facebook Marketplace. According to third-party research:
- More than a billion people worldwide buy and sell on Facebook Marketplace each month.
- 1 in 6 people on Marketplace report being victim of a scam, most often through the use of a fraudulent buyer or seller profile.
“Peer-to-peer markets like Facebook Marketplace are a tremendous opportunity for millions or even billions of people,” says Confirm CEO Kirk Simpson. “By helping people be sure that the stranger they’re interacting with is who they say they are, Confirm instantly increases the safety and peace of mind in an online transaction.”
With Confirm, people can create a verified digital ConfirmID using government-issued ID like a passport or driver’s license. The ConfirmID can then be shared safely with others to establish trust. A person who creates a ConfirmID can use it over and over, anywhere they go online, to establish trust in future interactions, too.
“We’re confident that each month Confirm will help millions of people worldwide feel safer and more confident in their online transactions,” says Confirm head of strategy Peter Carrescia. “And we envision a future where Confirm’s verified portable identity as well as other verified authentic data will be available to use in online environments and interactions, ranging from social media to financial services, talent management, and commerce.”
In addition to its central identity features, today Confirm offers other features that bring peace of mind to marketplace transactions, including determining the owner of a Facebook account, and establishing payment terms and meeting places for in-person transactions. Confirm is designed to work with any peer-to-peer marketplaces, including Facebook Marketplace, Kijiji, eBay, and others.
With many decades of tech and startup experience between them, Simpson and Carrescia most recently worked together on Wave Financial, which was acquired by H&R Block in 2019 for $537 million.