IRS will soon require a selfie to file your taxes
Filling your taxes is about to get even more tedious
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Paying your taxes online in the US is about to get a whole lot more difficult as theIRShas revealed that taxpayers' existing credentials will no longer work beginning this summer.
Instead, the government agency is partnering with a third-party identity verification service called ID.me that requires users to submit copies of bills and other identity documents though they will also have to submit a live video feed of their faces using a mobile device.
First launched back in 2010, Virginia-based ID.me was originally created to helpecommerce sitesvalidate the identities of customers like veterans, teachers and students who might be eligible for discounts at online retailers. Now though, the company is widely known for providing US states with online identity verification services to help them deal withunemployment fraud.
According toKrebsOnSecurity, around 27 states currently use ID.me to screen foridentity thievesapplying for benefits in someone else’s name. Unlike other online verification services, ID.me requires applicants to submit even more documents including copies of utility bills and details about their mobile phone service in addition to scans of their driver’s license or other government-issued IDs.
Getting verified
If an applicant doesn’t have the documents required by ID.me or their application triggers a potential fraud flag, the company may require a recorded, livevideo chatwith the person applying for benefits.
As Brian Krebs' credentials at the IRS will soon no longer work just like the rest of American taxpayers, he decided to create an ID.me account and found the process to be quite lengthy and tiresome. For instance, Krebs stepped away for just five minutes and had to login again as well as re-submit the documents he had previously uploaded.
After entering your email and choosing astrong password, users are then prompted to confirm their email address. Following this, ID.me then prompts users to choose a multi-factor authentication (MFA) method. Fortunately, the service supports several different MFA options including a six-digit code sent via text, a phone call to code generator apps and physicalsecurity keysthat support the FIDO (Fast ID Online) security specifications.
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From here, users need to upload the necessary documents and if they are accepted, ID.me will then prompt you to take a live selfie using yoursmartphoneor your computer’swebcam. The company then verifies your phone number but Krebs reported that his application got stuck at the “Confirming Your Phone” stage.
Preventing fraud is certainly something the IRS should be doing but by requiring users to submit additional documents andbiometric datato a third-party company, the agency is making the process of filing your taxes more difficult for US citizens. At the same time, if ID.me falls victim to a data breach, cybercriminals will have more than enough information to commitidentity theft.
We’ll have to wait and see how the IRS' rollout of using ID.me to verify taxpayers identities goes but given the difficulties Krebs had getting verified, it has the potential to be a real pain for US citizens this summer.
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After working with the TechRadar Pro team for the last several years, Anthony is now the security and networking editor at Tom’s Guide where he covers everything from data breaches and ransomware gangs to the best way to cover your whole home or business with Wi-Fi. When not writing, you can find him tinkering with PCs and game consoles, managing cables and upgrading his smart home.
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