With Covid-19, where the online sales of the e-commerce sector increased, so did the challenges associated with it. Selling anything online that is age-restricted is a great responsibility on the e-commerce vendors. This demands an age verification solution that makes sure that the product which is being sold is not purchased by minors.
Age verification is a method to check that the client who is making a certain purchase is above the valid age limit. It helps to prevent minors from buying items that really do not suit their age. By performing age verification, the company can better comply with KYC and KYCC regulations.
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Process of Online Age Verification
Following are the simple steps that any client has to go through before they make any purchase online.
- The user is asked to provide their Personally Identifiable Information.
- Once they have submitted their PII, they are asked to upload a photo of their identity document that can be a passport, driver’s license, or the ID card issued by the government.
- The age verification system gets all the information using Optical Character Recognition and then runs verification checks.
- When the verification process is completed and the age verified, the user is either validated or declined by comparing their age with the provided threshold.
Applications of Age Checks in E-Commerce
Whether it’s banks, any financial institution, gaming sector, or e-commerce industry, age verification helps them to combat frauds at the hands of minors. And here is how age verification online is helping the e-commerce industry.
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Cut Chargeback Cost
Many customers make a purchase online. They utilize the product and after taking advantage of it, they just claim that they haven’t bought it and they must be charged back. The case is a little different for minors. What minors do actually, they purchase any violent content by paying through their parents’ credit card which becomes really tough for the e-commerce industry because their age can not be checked through those credit card details. Hence, age verification not only prevents minors from purchasing age-exclusive products but also reduces the chargeback cost.
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Prevent Identity Theft
Identity fraud is common in the e-commerce industry. The fraudsters make well use of this platform to perform their nefarious activities. They just steal the identities of others either to take control of their account or to make a synthetic identity for their illicit purposes. Age verification, however, helps to keep all such fraudsters away by verifying their age.
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Protect from Fake Platforms
The online vendors are just unaware of the false acquisitions that the customers made by manipulating the traffic of the virtual store. As a result, these platforms are just exploited at the hands of fabricated identities. Age verification has an important application where it gives protection to minors from false affiliated programs and child identity theft.
Know more about safer ways to identify fake id reviews.
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Helps to Comply with Regulations
The e-commerce sector, like all other sectors, is obliged to obey the laws of the regulatory authorities. They are required to not sell the age exclusive items to minors. For that, they need age verification to run an age check before selling any item to their customer. This helps them from paying heavy fines.
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Build the Brand Image and Enhance Credibility
If there is no age verification in the e-commerce or any financial sector, it means the item would be in the hands of a customer who is restricted to use such an age-restricted product. This raises concerns of parents and defames the company Thus, age verification services are essential to verify age of the client and ensure that the age-restricted service or product is not sold to any minor. This would increase the platform’s credibility and build its reputation in the market.
Final Thoughts
To wrap up, it is correct to say that age verification has become a necessity in e-commerce and all other sectors where fraud has become prevalent. It helps the e-commerce sector grow by reducing the chargeback costs, identity thefts and also protecting the minors being exploited by the fake platforms. Moreover, the age verification solution helps the company in complying with the regulations, thus preventing it from paying a handsome amount in the form of fines. It is just a one-stop solution that enhances the company’s credibility and reputation and makes it stand out from all the other similar companies in the market.