> ## Documentation Index
> Fetch the complete documentation index at: https://docs.fraudeg.com/llms.txt
> Use this file to discover all available pages before exploring further.

# Identity Verification, KYC, and Watchlist Screening

> Verify user identities at onboarding and throughout the customer lifecycle using FraudEG's KYC, document verification, and watchlist screening APIs.

FraudEG's identity verification suite lets you confirm that users are who they say they are — at onboarding, during high-risk actions, and whenever your compliance program requires re-verification. The suite covers Know Your Customer (KYC) for individuals, Know Your Business (KYB) for companies, government document verification, liveness checks to prevent spoofing, and real-time watchlist screening against global sanctions, politically exposed persons (PEP), and adverse media databases. All verification types share the same API surface and webhook callback pattern.

## What Identity Verification Covers

| Verification Type         | Description                                                                                          |
| ------------------------- | ---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- |
| **KYC (individual)**      | Verify name, date of birth, address, and national ID number against authoritative data sources.      |
| **KYB (business)**        | Verify business registration, UBO (ultimate beneficial ownership), and directors.                    |
| **Document verification** | Authenticate passports, driver's licenses, and national ID cards using AI document analysis.         |
| **Liveness check**        | Confirm the person submitting the document is physically present using biometric liveness detection. |
| **Watchlist screening**   | Screen identities against OFAC, EU, UN sanctions lists, PEP registries, and adverse media sources.   |

## When to Verify

* **User onboarding** — verify identity before granting account access, especially for regulated financial products.
* **Step-up challenge** — trigger re-verification when a transaction score exceeds your high-risk threshold or a `behavioral_anomaly` signal is present.
* **Account changes** — re-verify when a user updates their email address, phone number, bank account, or shipping address.
* **Periodic refresh** — re-screen existing users against updated watchlists on a scheduled cadence to maintain ongoing compliance.

## The Verification Flow

Submit the user's identity data to FraudEG, which checks it against data sources and returns one of four statuses:

1. You submit identity data via `POST /v1/identity/verify`.
2. FraudEG checks the data against government registries, credit bureau records, document authentication services, and watchlist databases.
3. FraudEG returns a `status` field — `verified`, `pending`, `failed`, or `flagged` — along with a `verification_id` you store on your user record.

### Submitting an Identity Verification

```bash theme={null}
curl -X POST https://api.fraudeg.com/v1/identity/verify \
  -H "Authorization: Bearer feg_live_sk_xxxxxxxxxxxx" \
  -H "Content-Type: application/json" \
  -d '{
    "user_id": "usr_8f3k2p",
    "type": "kyc",
    "name": {
      "first": "Jamie",
      "last": "Rivera"
    },
    "date_of_birth": "1988-04-23",
    "address": {
      "line1": "742 Evergreen Terrace",
      "city": "Springfield",
      "state": "IL",
      "postal_code": "62704",
      "country": "US"
    },
    "document": {
      "type": "drivers_license",
      "number": "D123-4567-8901",
      "issuing_state": "IL",
      "expiry_date": "2028-04-22"
    }
  }'
```

## Verification Statuses

| Status     | Meaning                                                                  | Recommended Action                                                            |
| ---------- | ------------------------------------------------------------------------ | ----------------------------------------------------------------------------- |
| `verified` | Identity confirmed against data sources.                                 | Proceed normally. Store the `verification_id` on the user record.             |
| `pending`  | Verification requires additional processing (e.g., document review).     | Wait for the async result delivered via webhook. Do not block the user yet.   |
| `failed`   | Identity could not be confirmed — data mismatch or document invalid.     | Block the action or escalate to manual review. Request the user to resubmit.  |
| `flagged`  | Identity matched against a watchlist (sanctions, PEP, or adverse media). | Immediately escalate to your compliance team. Do not proceed with onboarding. |

<Note>
  For `pending` verifications, FraudEG sends the final result to your webhook endpoint configured in **Platform → Webhooks**. Listen for the `identity.verification.completed` event, which contains the resolved `status` and full verification detail. Configure a fallback timeout in your application in case the webhook is delayed.
</Note>

## Watchlist Screening

Screen a user or business entity against global sanctions and PEP lists at any time using the watchlist endpoint. This is separate from the verification flow and can be run independently.

```bash theme={null}
curl -X GET "https://api.fraudeg.com/v1/identity/watchlist?user_id=usr_8f3k2p&name=Jamie+Rivera&country=US" \
  -H "Authorization: Bearer feg_live_sk_xxxxxxxxxxxx"
```

FraudEG screens against:

* **OFAC SDN** (U.S. Office of Foreign Assets Control Specially Designated Nationals)
* **EU Consolidated Sanctions List**
* **UN Security Council Sanctions**
* **PEP registries** — global and country-specific
* **Adverse media** — negative news signals from monitored publications

## Sample Verified Response

```json theme={null}
{
  "verification_id": "ver_9Xp2mTkL5rNq",
  "user_id": "usr_8f3k2p",
  "type": "kyc",
  "status": "verified",
  "score": 97,
  "checks": {
    "name_match": "pass",
    "dob_match": "pass",
    "address_match": "pass",
    "document_authentic": "pass",
    "watchlist_clear": true
  },
  "created_at": "2024-11-14T10:05:33Z",
  "completed_at": "2024-11-14T10:05:34Z"
}
```

## Continue Learning

<CardGroup cols={2}>
  <Card title="KYC Onboarding Guide" icon="user-check" href="/guides/kyc-onboarding">
    Step-by-step guide to integrating KYC verification into your user onboarding flow.
  </Card>

  <Card title="Identity Verify API Reference" icon="code" href="/api-reference/identity/verify">
    Full parameter reference, response schema, and error codes for the identity verification endpoint.
  </Card>
</CardGroup>