DHS S&T Awards IPROOV $198K to Pilot Genuine Presence Detection and Anti-Spoofing Capability

WASHINGTON – The Department of Homeland Security (DHS) has invested significantly in commercially available technologies to enable the U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) to streamline cross-border travel at ports of entry while maintaining a high degree of confidence of traveler identity and status. The DHS Science and Technology Directorate (S&T) awarded $198,407 in phase 4 funding to iProov Ltd. of London, England, to test and pilot its solution, developed over the first three Silicon Valley Innovation Program (SVIP) project phases, in a full-scale CBP operational environment. This award was made under SVIP’s Enhancing CBP Passenger Processing solicitation.

In its first three SVIP phases, iProov successfully developed an integrated solution to enable travelers to quickly transit remote border ports using their personal devices to report their entry and exit to CBP―without requiring the direct engagement of a CBP Officer in person or online―with a secure, privacy focused mobile application.

“A critical challenge when delivering digital services that require some manner of identity verification is the need to ensure that the entity being verified is a real live human and not a replica or a recording,” said Anil John, SVIP technical director. “The pandemic has accelerated the need for high-value remote digital service delivery, and iProov has now adapted its technology to provide their anti-spoofing solution to a broad range of applications.”

iProov’s Flashmark technology is adapted to capture user imagery and detect spoofs―in the form of replica copies, doctored imagery, and replayed recordings―with a high degree of accuracy without relying on special or trusted hardware. Flashmark uses the screen of a mobile device to flash a unique, one-time sequence of colors, under server control, onto the user’s face. The server uses machine learning technology to analyze and determine if the image is a live person.

iProov made their Flashmark solution available as a Software Development Kit (SDK) that can be deployed with any mobile application, which expands its anti-spoofing capabilities. In phase 4, iProov SDK will be deployed and integrated into one of CBP’s mobile application pilot deployments to test and validate the technology in an operational setting.

About SVIP

SVIP is one of S&T’s programs and tools to fund innovation and work with private sector partners to advance homeland security solutions. Companies participating in SVIP are eligible for up to $800,000 of non-dilutive funding over four phases to develop and adapt commercial technologies for homeland security use cases.

For more information on current and future SVIP solicitations, visit: https://www.dhs.gov/science-and-technology/svip or contact [email protected].

For more information about S&T’s innovation programs and tools, visit https://www.dhs.gov/science-and-technology/business-opportunities.