Company acquisitions happen all the time, and it isn"t always immediately clear why such a business deal was made. Such is the case with today"s reveal that Facebook has acquired government ID authentication firm Confirm.io.
The deal was announced on the company"s official site, and confirmed with Facebook by TechCrunch. Neither Confirm"s nor Facebook"s statements shed much light on the deal:
When we launched Confirm, our mission was to become the market"s trusted identity origination platform for which other multifactor verification services can build upon. Now, we"re ready to take the next step on our journey with Facebook. However, in the meantime this means all of our current digital ID authentication software offerings will be wound down.
Facebook was equally obscure, saying only "We are excited to welcome the Confirm team to Facebook. Their technology and expertise will support our ongoing efforts to keep our community safe."
The last two words are obviously key, as besides authenticating government-issued IDs, Confirm also worked on biometrics and facial recognition projects.
The acquisition supposedly brings Confirm"s entire team into Facebook. Although we don"t have an exact number, LinkedIn lists about 50 employees not affiliated as investors or board members.
The deal could be as simple as Facebook trying to provide better security for their users in the event they get locked out of their account. The company has in the past told users to mail in copies of their IDs, such as driver licenses, to verify identity. Facebook was also looking at the possibility of letting users identify themselves through selfies.
Whatever the reason, it will be interesting to see if we see Confirm"s tech showing up in any Facebook products in the near future.
Source and Image: TechCrunch