Is The ID.me Verification Process A Nightmare For You Too?

[Opti]

Found this article and wonder what posters think. Apparently ID.me is used for childcare tax credits, various states unemployment programs and more. Have you used it? Have you had issues?


www.gobankingrates.com/taxes/deductions/is-the-id-me-verification-process-a-nightmare-for-you-too-youre-not-alone-an-expert-weighs-in/

Since the IRS opened its two new online portals for people to register for the child tax credit, many have had their efforts dampened by a burdensome identification process.

A third-party company, ID.me has partnered with the IRS in order to verify people’s identities before they can even access the portals. Primary documents for verification like a passport or driver’s license are required, along with a facial scan done through your smartphone.



For some, the process has been fairly straightforward, but for others with little access to technology and verification issues, it could mean leaving much-needed money on the table.



I personally spent over a week trying to tackle the issues with identity verification through ID.me to try and log onto the portal and manage our tax credit. Apparently, my facial scan and passport were not enough to verify my identity, so ID.me requested some sort of document with my full social security number displayed on it. The only option that seemed feasible was a pay stub via my payroll provider, ADP – which wasn’t able to help me, explaining that the IRS does not allow payroll companies to display full social security numbers on any paystubs. Perhaps there was another way to circumvent this cycle, but I couldn’t find a way out of the loop.

[Opti]

More from the article-


Rebecca Thompson, Director of Networks for Prosperity Now spoke exclusively to GOBankingRates on how these and other issues have affected her clients. Prosperity Now is a national nonprofit intermediary that works to ensure that all individual families and communities can prosper without exception and achieve wealth.



The child tax credit offered through the American Rescue Plan is projected to lift millions of American children out of poverty — but IRS-induced barriers to entry stand to prevent many from ever accessing the money.



“Taxes are a critical component of our country’s economic system. They also represent an opportune moment for low-to-moderate-income households and people of color to leverage the tax system and access those credits and benefits that are available to them and that they’re eligible for to improve their overall household financial stability and well-being,” Thompson said, highlighting the importance of easy access to the benefit.



“From our perspective, we can help people once they get in and access their accounts. We can help them — it’s the getting into the account part that presents the largest barrier,” she added.

[raeoflyte]

I use it for work and it's usually fine, but a few times I've had issues getting logged in. I think my issue is when I need it for personal info like social security but there is no delineation for work and personal personas.

[Opti]

How did your initial verification go? I'm having issues because it won't verify you on a VOIP phone number (my primary number from the cable company) nor does it seem to like my cellphone provider.

[raeoflyte]

Dec 21, 2021 14:05:53 GMT -5 Opti said:

How did your initial verification go? I'm having issues because it won't verify you on a VOIP phone number (my primary number from the cable company) nor does it seem to like my cellphone provider.

Hmmm....I don't remember much. It's been a while. I feel like there was some back and forth but was set up without much hassle.

I'd be screwed if I ever changed my phone # though.

[teen persuasion]

I've had to help a number of patrons get thru the ID.me gauntlet to get NY benefits like unemployment or rental assistance, or for a job application.

Our first big issue was getting the correct link to begin the process. It's unique for each state apparently, and NY tends to send you the link. If you can't find that link, it's hard to get the right link by googling it - so many bad links are out there, that Google's results are polluted. Once I found the right link, I put bookmarks to it in every browser on every public PC.

You need to have both a smartphone and a PC with fast internet. Patrons who tried to use just their phone kept getting timed out. Once they came to the library to use our internet and computers it went much faster. You log onto the site on the PC, and use your phone to take pix and upload your id and eventual selfie to prove you are you.

I'm not sure if you can do it without a smartphone for the selfie. We had one patron who was going to apply for unemployment, but didn't have all her paperwork. We discussed the ID.me issue, because she is low tech and has no smartphone (could obviously use our PCs, but no webcams for video). Researching it, there's a video conference option for when the selfie id won't work. We repurposed a Census laptop with a camera, in hopes it might work for her - she hasn't returned. There's a good chance it won't work; we had poor luck with scanning id and uploading those files, it kept rejecting the pix. The system is designed to work with smartphones; I wonder if quality of the phone makes a difference in how well it all works.

[steph08]

It was a super pain in the butt. I finally got myself unenrolled from the child tax credit but gave up on unenrolling my DH because it absolutely would not match his face to his driver's license.

I also tried to do it during a time when we didn't have WiFi at the house, which I think was the big problem. But I just gave up and forgot about it.

[Opti]

Dec 21, 2021 20:56:36 GMT -5 teen persuasion said:

I've had to help a number of patrons get thru the ID.me gauntlet to get NY benefits like unemployment or rental assistance, or for a job application.

Our first big issue was getting the correct link to begin the process. It's unique for each state apparently, and NY tends to send you the link. If you can't find that link, it's hard to get the right link by googling it - so many bad links are out there, that Google's results are polluted. Once I found the right link, I put bookmarks to it in every browser on every public PC.

You need to have both a smartphone and a PC with fast internet. Patrons who tried to use just their phone kept getting timed out. Once they came to the library to use our internet and computers it went much faster. You log onto the site on the PC, and use your phone to take pix and upload your id and eventual selfie to prove you are you.

I'm not sure if you can do it without a smartphone for the selfie. We had one patron who was going to apply for unemployment, but didn't have all her paperwork. We discussed the ID.me issue, because she is low tech and has no smartphone (could obviously use our PCs, but no webcams for video). Researching it, there's a video conference option for when the selfie id won't work. We repurposed a Census laptop with a camera, in hopes it might work for her - she hasn't returned. There's a good chance it won't work; we had poor luck with scanning id and uploading those files, it kept rejecting the pix. The system is designed to work with smartphones; I wonder if quality of the phone makes a difference in how well it all works.

I think it needs a certain resolution on the scans. Of course it doesn't tell you that in advance nor even the format you need until you try to upload. Luckily the last round I decided to scan at the highest resolution the library scanner allowed, and that it would take. Unfortunately ID.me assumes everyone has a smart phone and knows how to use it, which screens some people out. Almost screened me out.

Not sure what resolution smart phones take pics at. The library used to have a good dedicated scanner, but it appears most of the county libraries including that one went to copiers that can scan. The image quality is poorer and the defaults are totally wrong for this process. Go for the max resolution you can if she comes back. No webcams for video is a problem. 

I think its horrible that there aren't any in person options. NJ closed the unemployment and dept of labor offices. It was a Covid thing, but its possible they might not come back. And having lived through this process, I think there might be many people who don't get counted as unemployed simply because they can't jump through all the computer and smart phone hoops to just qualify. 

[teen persuasion]

I think its horrible that there aren't any in person options. NJ closed the unemployment and dept of labor offices. It was a Covid thing, but its possible they might not come back. And having lived through this process, I think there might be many people who don't get counted as unemployed simply because they can't jump through all the computer and smart phone hoops to just qualify.

Agreed. This patron said NY DOL offices were closed, too, so no in person option. There was a by-phone option, but it warned you could not get direct deposit if you started by phone. I also remember others who started by phone still needed to do the ID.me to qualify, so that's not a workaround

They did need some way to screen out the scammers; my DH had someone fraudulently claiming unemployment in his name last spring. The system sent a welcome letter to our address; that's how we caught it and reported it. That said, this method screens out scammers and low tech, no tech, and those in broadband deserts.

[NoNamePerson]

Dec 22, 2021 8:19:18 GMT -5 teen persuasion said:

I think its horrible that there aren't any in person options. NJ closed the unemployment and dept of labor offices. It was a Covid thing, but its possible they might not come back. And having lived through this process, I think there might be many people who don't get counted as unemployed simply because they can't jump through all the computer and smart phone hoops to just qualify.

Agreed. This patron said NY DOL offices were closed, too, so no in person option. There was a by-phone option, but it warned you could not get direct deposit if you started by phone. I also remember others who started by phone still needed to do the ID.me to qualify, so that's not a workaround

They did need some way to screen out the scammers; my DH had someone fraudulently claiming unemployment in his name last spring. The system sent a welcome letter to our address; that's how we caught it and reported it. That said, this method screens out scammers and low tech, no tech, and those in broadband deserts.

My son and one of his employees had the same problem! He said it took some doing to get the state to finally realize it was fraudulently filed. Frustrating to say the least.

[teen persuasion]

Dec 22, 2021 14:29:41 GMT -5 NoNamePerson said:

Dec 22, 2021 8:19:18 GMT -5 teen persuasion said:

Agreed. This patron said NY DOL offices were closed, too, so no in person option. There was a by-phone option, but it warned you could not get direct deposit if you started by phone. I also remember others who started by phone still needed to do the ID.me to qualify, so that's not a workaround

They did need some way to screen out the scammers; my DH had someone fraudulently claiming unemployment in his name last spring. The system sent a welcome letter to our address; that's how we caught it and reported it. That said, this method screens out scammers and low tech, no tech, and those in broadband deserts.

My son and one of his employees had the same problem! He said it took some doing to get the state to finally realize it was fraudulently filed. Frustrating to say the least.

NY had a link and phone number to report fraudulent claims, no problem doing that.  He also contacted his HR, since it was filed on their record.

It was really stupid, though, the more we thought about it.  Whoever filed it didn't change the address, so the notification came in the mail to us.  How did they think they were going to get any money?  It really made no sense, though it was creepy trying to figure out who knew where he worked and would file. That implies someone he works with, but

[TheOtherMe]

Sadly almost everyone's information is out there on the dark web.  That's what the credit union told me about my SSN being compromised.  

Pretty much said it's a matter of time for most people.  

There have been so many breaches of information.  That information doesn't end up in the hands of good people.

[Opti]

Dec 24, 2021 14:39:36 GMT -5 teen persuasion said:

Dec 22, 2021 14:29:41 GMT -5 NoNamePerson said:

My son and one of his employees had the same problem! He said it took some doing to get the state to finally realize it was fraudulently filed. Frustrating to say the least.

NY had a link and phone number to report fraudulent claims, no problem doing that.  He also contacted his HR, since it was filed on their record.

It was really stupid, though, the more we thought about it.  Whoever filed it didn't change the address, so the notification came in the mail to us.  How did they think they were going to get any money?  It really made no sense, though it was creepy trying to figure out who knew where he worked and would file. That implies someone he works with, but

This is why I actually do not like ID.me . It seems to me it would make it easier to commit fraud in the future. Just like Yahoo and FB accounts are a target rich environment, now there's a new honeypot.

[Opti]

Dec 22, 2021 14:29:41 GMT -5 NoNamePerson said:

Dec 22, 2021 8:19:18 GMT -5 teen persuasion said:

Agreed. This patron said NY DOL offices were closed, too, so no in person option. There was a by-phone option, but it warned you could not get direct deposit if you started by phone. I also remember others who started by phone still needed to do the ID.me to qualify, so that's not a workaround

They did need some way to screen out the scammers; my DH had someone fraudulently claiming unemployment in his name last spring. The system sent a welcome letter to our address; that's how we caught it and reported it. That said, this method screens out scammers and low tech, no tech, and those in broadband deserts.

My son and one of his employees had the same problem! He said it took some doing to get the state to finally realize it was fraudulently filed. Frustrating to say the least.

Yikes. How long did it take them to clear that up? I know a person who said it was taking 10 weeks to get unemployment money, but now its making too much sense why that might have been. How crappy for them.

[Deleted]

Yikes. The US Department of Veteran's Affairs is requiring ID.me now. My dad gets his prescription medications through them. I am not able to register him because they cannot verify his identity. I uploaded his state ID and his VA identification card; entered his DOB and SSN. Now they have all of that information for nothing.

He is a Korean War veteran. Thanks America!

[Opti]

Dec 30, 2021 10:02:08 GMT -5 @beckaroo said:

Yikes. The US Department of Veteran's Affairs is requiring ID.me now. My dad gets his prescription medications through them. I am not able to register him because they cannot verify his identity. I uploaded his state ID and his VA identification card; entered his DOB and SSN. Now they have all of that information for nothing.

He is a Korean War veteran. Thanks America!

What is the verification process stuck on? My Dad is a Korean war vet as well FWIW.

[Deleted]

Dec 30, 2021 10:23:49 GMT -5 Opti said:

Dec 30, 2021 10:02:08 GMT -5 @beckaroo said:

Yikes. The US Department of Veteran's Affairs is requiring ID.me now. My dad gets his prescription medications through them. I am not able to register him because they cannot verify his identity. I uploaded his state ID and his VA identification card; entered his DOB and SSN. Now they have all of that information for nothing.

He is a Korean War veteran. Thanks America!

What is the verification process stuck on? My Dad is a Korean war vet as well FWIW.

They cannot verify his identity.
I uploaded front and back of his driver's license, his VA member card, SSN, DOB, address and phone number. They could not verify his identity with that.

[Opti]

Dec 30, 2021 12:10:57 GMT -5 @beckaroo said:

Dec 30, 2021 10:23:49 GMT -5 Opti said:

What is the verification process stuck on? My Dad is a Korean war vet as well FWIW.

They cannot verify his identity.
I uploaded front and back of his driver's license, his VA member card, SSN, DOB, address and phone number. They could not verify his identity with that.

It's important to know what it failed on so you can correct it.

Mine failed in the software because they could not verify my cell phone provider even though it is in my name and not a small provider.
It will verify some cellphones. I have a feeling it actually works with very few, possibly just AT&T and Verizon. If the phone is pre-paid, it only works with AT&T, Verizon, and Sprint. That leaves many people out in the cold. 

You need a rep. Once you get one, they will go through a process with you. The phone needs to be in his name. All the docs need to be high enough resolution and readable. I'd be surprised if even 50% made it through the process on the first try. 

[Opti]

www.statista.com/statistics/199359/market-share-of-wireless-carriers-in-the-us-by-subscriptions/

AT&T is number one per them at 44.8% of the market.


AT&T Mobility: 176.7 million (Q3 2020) Verizon Wireless: 120.32 million subscribers (Q3 2020) T-Mobile US: 102.064 million (Q4 2020) ( Sprint and T-Mobile merged on April 1, 2020

I think the phone verify is the weakest link in the ID.me online verification. I hope to meet someone who it worked for on the first try.

[Spellbound454]

Yes I use one for work

It would not let me in to any of my files, emails, registers, teams because it was sending a password to a phone I no longer have.
simple thing to fix you would think..... but I got locked out for a week whilst the IT department kept fiddling with it.

[Opti]

Dec 31, 2021 5:50:47 GMT -5 Spellbound454 said:

Yes I use one for work

It would not let me in to any of my files, emails, registers, teams because it was sending a password to a phone I no longer have.
simple thing to fix you would think..... but I got locked out for a week whilst the IT department kept fiddling with it.

Nice you had someone to fix it for you. I think that might be the issue with my Microsoft account. Linked to phone & number long gone.

[Opti]

FYI NJ has not let the ID.me verify go through yet and pay my UE. The only official way to find out why is to call the notorious phone line. Which of course was not up today. I am very angry. Because the software did not work on its first try, it's flawed, not my info, I am in financial hell. 

If anyone knows ID.me programmers, I'd love to find out how it really works, because my assumptions are making me furious. Just because their sw failed to verify my cellphone was truly mine in a couple tries of at most a minute should not translate to me waiting more than 4 weeks to be OKed. And I realize the latter is possibly purely NJ's fault.

[teen persuasion]

Several Bogleheads threads on travails with signing up for IDme:

link

link

Maybe there's some good info buried in there.

[jerseygirl]

Jan 17, 2022 14:08:29 GMT -5 Opti said:

FYI NJ has not let the ID.me verify go through yet and pay my UE. The only official way to find out why is to call the notorious phone line. Which of course was not up today. I am very angry. Because the software did not work on its first try, it's flawed, not my info, I am in financial hell. 

If anyone knows ID.me programmers, I'd love to find out how it really works, because my assumptions are making me furious. Just because their sw failed to verify my cellphone was truly mine in a couple tries of at most a minute should not translate to me waiting more than 4 weeks to be OKed. And I realize the latter is possibly purely NJ's fault.

Can you file without the ID me? I did in 2020 on the nj unemployment website and didn’t need this . Do you have a smartphone ?

I went to the website and didn’t need ID me. Can you set up a new email so you might not run into the ‘old’ Version of HUTA hang up try again
Try again, so sorry it’s incredibly frustrating

secure.dol.state.nj.us/sso/XUI/#continueRegister/ui

[minnesotapaintlady]

I created an ID me login tonight.  I logged into the IRS site and it said my regular login would no longer work starting this summer so figured I might as well.  I didn't realize I'd have to do the photos and face scanning, but it all seemed to have worked ok. 

[Opti]

Jan 17, 2022 18:28:09 GMT -5 jerseygirl said:

Jan 17, 2022 14:08:29 GMT -5 Opti said:

FYI NJ has not let the ID.me verify go through yet and pay my UE. The only official way to find out why is to call the notorious phone line. Which of course was not up today. I am very angry. Because the software did not work on its first try, it's flawed, not my info, I am in financial hell. 

If anyone knows ID.me programmers, I'd love to find out how it really works, because my assumptions are making me furious. Just because their sw failed to verify my cellphone was truly mine in a couple tries of at most a minute should not translate to me waiting more than 4 weeks to be OKed. And I realize the latter is possibly purely NJ's fault.

Can you file without the ID me? No I did in 2020 on the nj unemployment website and didn’t need this . Do you have a smartphone ?

I went to the website and didn’t need ID me. Can you set up a new email so you might not run into the ‘old’ Version of HUTA hang up try again
Try again, so sorry it’s incredibly frustrating

secure.dol.state.nj.us/sso/XUI/#continueRegister/ui

To currently get UE in NJ requires two pieces. Applying for unemployment on NJ's website and passing through the ID.me gauntlet.  I am waiting for NJ itself to acknowledge I passed through ID.me . Had the stars aligned and the damn program verified my smartphone was indeed owned by me and only me, I would already have had weeks of payments. But it failed for reasons I do not know. Hence, I am pissed. Angry. 

FWIW, NJ is one of the states in the US doing a pilot program with ID.me as probably fraud prevention in unemployment. I have no idea when they started, but I doubt it was true in 2020. In practice, ID.me functions as a way to deny unemployment funds to a host of New Jerseyans from the under-teched, under-funded, to those the system simply has decided to have a problem with. The guy in my complex still hasn't been paid, nor has another woman. He's been waiting months. According to him. NJ is denying the validity of one of his documents. They better not do that to me, or I'll be all over the interwebs by month end. 

Lastly, I did not do ID.me initially after filing for NJ UE, because I partly wondered if I was being scammed. My notification to do ID.me came in an email after my NJ file was claim. My claim has been pending since I filed. The last time I got through the phone line they told me the only hold up was ID.me.  And yet here I am.

<Death glare in general direction of NJ DOL or whatever special children came up with this process.>

[Opti]

Jerseygirl,

Just found this looking at some things-


www.nj.gov/labor/lwdhome/press/2021/20210326_identityverification.shtml


OR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

March 26, 2021



TRENTON – The New Jersey Department of Labor and Workforce Development (NJDOL) is launching an enhanced identity verification tool today to expedite processing for legitimate Unemployment Insurance claims and further reduce fraudulent ones.


NJDOL has contracted with security vendor ID.me to provide multi-factor identity verification services that will assist the department in authenticating claimants’ identity in a more efficient manner. The service enables claimants to verify their identity online using an efficient, self-service application.



“Our number-one priority is, and always has been, getting claimants the benefits they deserve as quickly as possible, and ID.me is yet another valuable improvement we’ve made to make this process faster and easier,” said Labor Commissioner Robert Asaro-Angelo. “Contracting with this nationally recognized service allows our agents to focus more time on processing complex claims, so it’s a win for all our claimants, even those not affected by fraud.”


Opti note - This is a lie, and I know too many people that agree with me.



The process can be completed in a few minutes using a computer or mobile phone and common pieces of documentation. Users also have the option of completing the process via a live video conference session.

The above is from the release and is not entirely true. The process can be completed quickly in a few minutes if you are willing to use the smartphone for all your doc pics and are near your other device for multi-factor verify. However, if it fails, and does not succeed in the next two attempts ... you must wait until a live video conference option becomes available. You cannot opt into the live video conference session. The "help" is via email and basically useless. There is no number to call and "help" makes dealing with the Cable company look brilliant.

[Opti]

Jan 17, 2022 22:59:47 GMT -5 minnesotapaintlady said:

I created an ID me login tonight.  I logged into the IRS site and it said my regular login would no longer work starting this summer so figured I might as well.  I didn't realize I'd have to do the photos and face scanning, but it all seemed to have worked ok. 

Glad it worked for you. If you are willing, please PM me your cellphone provider. The IRS site may work different than what I dealt with as they might troll federal databases not just state ones. 

[minnesotapaintlady]

Jan 18, 2022 0:56:51 GMT -5 Opti said:

Jan 17, 2022 22:59:47 GMT -5 minnesotapaintlady said:

I created an ID me login tonight.  I logged into the IRS site and it said my regular login would no longer work starting this summer so figured I might as well.  I didn't realize I'd have to do the photos and face scanning, but it all seemed to have worked ok. 

Glad it worked for you. If you are willing, please PM me your cellphone provider. The IRS site may work different than what I dealt with as they might troll federal databases not just state ones. 

It's Ting with a Verizon SIM card.

[jerseygirl]

Opt4 Thanks for the explanation about NJ. Probably explains why I never got UE after my consulting ended in March 2021. I had applied for UE in 2020 and received all I was entitled to but not under my consulting but for the home health aide work I did for my sister in 2019. DS passed at end of 2019.
But in 2021 I reapplied for UE based on consulting income. Was asked for documentation for the consulting, received emails that all documents were accepted but kept getting messages about pending. I thought it was confusion about 2 ‘jobs’
But given the timing might have been no ID me. I eventually just gave up
I so sorry for the frustration you have
Hoping you gets a new great job and the UE will soon arrive and you get all the missing weeks