Identity verification glossary
Plain-language explanations of the terms used in KYC, identity verification, fraud prevention and data protection, with what they mean in Switzerland and the EU.
A
- Address verification
- Confirming that an address exists and that it belongs to the person who gave it.
- Age verification
- Confirming that a person meets a minimum age before they access a product or service.
- AML (anti-money laundering)
- The laws and controls that stop criminals from passing illegal money through legitimate businesses.
- AMLR (EU Anti-Money Laundering Regulation)
- The EU regulation that sets one anti-money-laundering rulebook across all member states.
- Authentication
- Confirming that a returning user is the same person who set up the account.
- Automated identification (Auto-Ident)
- Remote identity verification that runs fully automatically, without a person on a video call.
B
C
D
- Data minimisation
- Collecting and keeping only the personal data that is actually needed.
- Data residency
- Where personal data is physically stored and processed.
- Deepfake
- AI-generated or altered video, audio or images that imitate a real person.
- Device fingerprinting
- Recognising a device from its technical characteristics, without relying on cookies.
- Digital identity
- The set of verified information that represents a person online.
- Digital onboarding
- Signing up new customers fully online, including any identity checks.
- Document verification
- Checking that an identity document is genuine, valid and unaltered.
E
F
G
I
- Identity fraud
- Using someone else's identity, or a fake one, to get something you're not entitled to.
- Identity theft
- Stealing someone's personal information so it can be used to impersonate them.
- Identity verification
- Confirming that a person is who they claim to be, usually with an ID document and a live selfie.
- Injection attack
- Feeding a fake image or video directly into a verification flow, bypassing the camera.
J
K
L
M
- MiCA (Markets in Crypto-Assets Regulation)
- The EU regulation that sets common rules for crypto-asset issuers and service providers.
- MRZ (machine-readable zone)
- The lines of characters at the bottom of a passport or ID card that machines can read.
- Multi-factor authentication (MFA)
- Logging in with two or more independent factors, such as a password and a phone.
N
P
S
- Self-declaration
- Information a person provides about themselves without it being checked.
- Smurfing
- Splitting large sums into many small transactions to avoid reporting thresholds.
- Swiss e-ID and swiyu
- Switzerland's state-issued electronic identity, held in the federal swiyu wallet app.
- Synthetic identity fraud
- Fraud using an identity built from a mix of real and invented details.
