Biometrics top identity verification, but no single signal wins trust

Regula’s newest global study suggests biometrics may be the most trusted form of identity verification, but trust is far from unanimous. The survey of 850 fraud prevention and financial crime leaders shows that organizations increasingly rely on biometric checks, but fewer than half consider them their most reliable evidence.

When prompted to say which type of identity evidence their organization trusts most, respondents favored two forms of evidence. Biometric capture — face, voice or fingerprint — ranked first at 37 percent. Chip‑enabled government IDs followed at 27 percent, forming a clear second tier.

Traditional documents without chips (14 percent) and credentials such as passwords or MFA (13 percent) trailed behind, while device or environmental signals barely registered at 5 percent. No category came close to majority trust.

“The question is no longer whether organizations should trust biometrics more than identity documents or vice versa,” argues Henry Patishman, EVP of Identity Verification Solutions at Regula. “Modern fraud targets every part of the verification process: AI can generate faces, manipulate documents, compromise credentials, and imitate legitimate user behavior. No single signal can answer every question required for a high-confidence identity decision.”

Regula says this reflects the reality that identity evidence works only in combination. “Trust comes from independent forms of evidence that reinforce one another,” Patishman says. Regula has also highlighted the importance of identity signal integrity as layered identity verification gains ground.

Industry preferences vary. Financial services, gaming, banking, telecoms and crypto all place the greatest weight on biometrics, with between 37 and 41 percent ranking them highest — likely reflecting the need to confirm physical presence in remote, high‑volume interactions.

Government agencies are the only sector where biometrics and chip‑enabled IDs tie, each at 29 percent, which reflects the dual requirement to validate both the document and the person presenting it.

Crypto platforms show the widest spread of trust across evidence types, assigning relatively more weight to non‑chip documents and device signals. Regula suggests this may stem from the sector’s varied onboarding environments and fraud patterns.

The findings form part of Regula’s Identity Verification in the Age of AI Agents study, conducted across seven countries. The first half of the report examines how deepfakes, synthetic identities and AI‑assisted actors are reshaping identity threats. The second explores how organizations are adapting verification processes, where confidence gaps remain and what capabilities are needed.

Read the full report to discover how organizations are adapting identity verification as digital interactions grow more complex.

Article Topics

AI fraud  |  biometrics  |  fraud prevention  |  identity verification  |  synthetic identity fraud