Persona in American Banker: Why digital identity verification needs a regulatory upgrade
Read the full piece in American Banker.
Digital identity verification is overdue for modernization. In a recent American Banker op-ed, Persona’s director of government affairs, Will Wilkinson, maps the way forward. His piece, “Digital identity verification needs a regulatory upgrade,” argues that the industry already has the tools to dramatically cut fraud, reduce data collection, and improve onboarding, but regulators need to clarify how existing rules apply to modern identity technologies.
Wilkinson spotlights three areas where regulators can unlock immediate progress.
Mobile driver’s licenses (mDLs)
mDLs allow banks to verify key attributes while collecting far less sensitive data. Under today’s Customer Identification Program (CIP) rules, mDLs already meet (and often exceed) the reliability of plastic IDs. What’s missing is explicit regulatory guidance.
“An mDL isn’t a photo of a plastic card — it’s an issuer-attested, cryptographically signed credential that can be checked for revocation in real time.”
Reusable, verified credentials
Instead of forcing consumers to reverify at every institution, banks could accept trusted third-party credentials supported by live signals such as device reputation and liveness checks. Wilkinson argues that this shift would simultaneously reduce friction and strengthen fraud defenses.
AI-based fraud defenses
With fraudsters exploiting generative AI, static document and selfie checks are no longer enough. Current model-risk frameworks already give regulators the tools to oversee advanced AI-driven verification — they simply need to make their applicability explicit.
“We don’t need new laws to modernize identity verification — regulators can unlock safer, more privacy-preserving models simply by clarifying how existing rules apply.”
Modernization doesn’t require new statutes or sweeping regulatory overhauls. It only requires clarity. The technology is ready. The ecosystem is ready. Practical guidance from regulators would empower the industry to move.
