ID.me

ID.me is identity verification software used primarily for people to prove their legal identity online. The digital credential can be used to access government services, healthcare logins, or discounts from retail brands.

Originally created as a method of curbing fraud from state unemployment services, it garnered a bad reputation for negatively impacting the consumers of sites that use this technology.

Why it Sucks
This software is very controversial with many issues explained below. No redeeming qualities please.
 * 1) The main reason for ID.me's infamy is that the software requires you to snap images of your driver's license or passport, and you also have to take a selfie. It often does not recognize these documents, and once it fails to verify this information, then you'll be forced into a video chat with a "Trusted Referee," and the wait times can be extremely long. This verification is also a huge privacy concern, leading to many accusing it of being spyware. If you are able to get through, the referee is usually rude like you owe them something.
 * 2) *Business Insider found that the data ID.me collects is unsecured, making it worse.
 * 3) *It heavily impacted unemployed individuals, and the software prevented those individuals from accessing their benefits. In fact, it got so bad that this led to congressional hearings over this.
 * 4) The system is extremely buggy and glitchy. Everything you do will result in an error, and the wait times for a Trusted Referee video chat can time out. Upon its implementation by several state unemployment services, ID.me experienced a huge server load, causing their servers to crash and/or experience a wide variety of technical issues.
 * 5) *If the ID.me servers ever go down because of an internet outage, then the user will be unable to verify and therefore use the ID.me-enabled website's services.
 * 6) The software is adware - when you sign up you will be bombarded with advertising pitches for "Good deals" from advertisers.
 * 7) You need a phone to reset your password. If you change your number and forget your password which is required to change it, your account becomes bricked and inaccessible.
 * 8) Terrible customer support. If you run into issues verifying your identity, you have nobody to turn to. If you are able to get through, they usually never respond. If they do respond, they typically copy-paste a prewritten message that is unhelpful. This led to numerous lawsuits from users.
 * 9) Some websites outside the governmental and unemployment sides still insist on implementing it for age verification despite its poor reputation.