From implementation to contracting the service, there are some myths surrounding facial connection to the INE.
On October 26th, the webinar “Facial Connection to the INE: Myths and Realities” was held. Andrés Amante, Commercial and Services Director at FIMPE, and Alejandro Esquivel, IT Director at LATIN ID, answered some questions about the verification service, which seeks to help institutions mitigate the risk of identity theft.
The verification service offered by the INE is 1:1, meaning that the user’s personal and biometric information is compared against the institution’s national databases, allowing for greater certainty of the individual’s identity, according to FIMPE, which has assisted more than 53 companies in this process over the past seven years.
According to specialists, the service can be contracted directly or through a technology provider. The latter offers a greater advantage, as they can offer comprehensive advice for completing the administrative procedures (which can take between 6 and 8 months) and have an already established and tested infrastructure for accessing the INE service and facial recognition validation, as FIMPE does, highlighted Andrés Amante.
During the conversation, FIMPE’s Commercial and Services Director denied that the INE’s verification service is exclusive, as any company wishing to validate users’ identities can use this tool. However, he clarified that, to obtain INE approval, it is important to justify the purpose of the service and the type of personal data processing, as this should not be handled by a third party.
Facial Validation at the INE
For seven years, the INE has promoted the fingerprint verification service and recently added facial recognition. It’s worth noting that the first method is performed through the INE’s own biometric engine, while the second is through an algorithm installed by a technology integrator.
Andrés Amante commented that there are currently at least five NIST-certified algorithms, which have been approved and evaluated by the INE, allowing them to install their infrastructure within the institution’s databases; another myth he debunked.
Likewise, when contracting the service, the algorithm and the person responsible for the process must be specified (although the INE will always be the “owner” of the service). This is because the autonomous agency will use this infrastructure to send the encrypted information for validation, shared Andrés Amante and Alejandro Esquivel, who offer this service together.
Furthermore, the specialists also emphasized facial capture, which must meet the standards established by the ICAO (The International Civil Aviation Organization), to avoid results such as “false positives” or “false negatives” due to the quality of the captured image.
What operating level do I belong to?
The INE has 11 operating levels, which are determined by the number of transactions sent per month or minute, according to the INE’s technical specifications document.
Based on his experience, the Commercial and Services Director mentioned that the operating levels with the highest contracting rates are 3 and 4, which allow 2 to 10 transactions per minute; while operating level 5 requires a significant investment in dedicated technological infrastructure and special licenses requested by the INE.
He also highlighted that FIMPE has a dosing system that helps clients avoid exceeding their transaction limit. Once the INE detects increased activity, it automatically notifies them of the increased level and adjusts the cost. Therefore, Alejandro Esquivel, IT Director at Latin ID, advised analyzing the transaction and weighing the balance: greater investment vs. service response time.
At the end of the Q&A session, the specialists concluded that the service has positive benefits for the financial and/or private sectors in automating digital onboarding and KYC processes. However, they recommended adding other biometrics and validation services to achieve greater certainty in identity verification. They also thanked the Fintech Mexico association, which provided the space for the event.
We invite you to watch the full webinar: Facial Connection to the INE – Myths and Truths.
