The report examines how current remote identity proofing methods can create barriers to Medicaid enrollment and suggests improvements to ensure equitable access for all applicants.
This resource provides updated draft digital identity guidelines for identity proofing, authentication, and federation, aiming to improve security, privacy, usability, and equity in digital identity systems.
Remote identify proofing is the process federal agencies and other entities use to verify that the individuals who apply online for benefits and services are who they claim to be. If the applicant responds correctly to personal questions, their identity is considered to be verified. However, data stolen in recent breaches could be used fraudulently to respond to knowledge-based verification questions. Alternative methods are available that provide stronger security, but these methods may have limitations in cost, convenience, technological maturity, and they may not be viable for all segments of the public.
On May 19, 2023, the Digital Benefits Network published a new, open dataset documenting authentication and identity proofing requirements across online SNAP, WIC, TANF, Medicaid, child care (CCAP) applications, and unemployment insurance applications.
This post argues that for the types of large-scale, organized fraud attacks that many state benefits systems saw during the pandemic, solutions grounded in cybersecurity methods may be far more effective than creating or adopting automated systems.
This 2023 presentation from the California Employment Development Department details the user personas the agency used to evaluate vendor proposals for a new identity proofing contract.
State of California Employment Development Department (EDD)
This scoring matrix from the California Employment Development Department (EDD) shows how the agency evaluated vendor proposals for a new identity proofing approach, based on vendors' ability to serve different user personas.
State of California Employment Development Department (EDD)
Described as the “public’s one account for government,” this U.S. government website allows users to use one account and password for secure, private access to participating government agencies.
