Achieving NIST 800-63A IAL3 Compliance Without Nationwide Travel

IALs are intended to limit highly scalable attacks by requiring the presentation of strong identity evidence, followed by biometric comparison with it, as well as providing auditability logs to prevent theft or repudiation of identities.

Once an applicant completes an IAL3 session successfully, their CSP enrolls them into a unique subscriber account and provides one or more authenticators tied to their verified identity – this helps prevent stand-in fraud as multiple people accessing data at the same time.

IAL3 verification

NIST IAL3 verification is the highest level of identity proofing, required of anyone who requires access to a FedRAMP High environment. It’s the digital equivalent of providing multiple forms of ID in person at government offices to prove you are who you say you are; additionally it’s also mandatory for any individual who works within security or compliance teams.

IAL3 process comprises three steps. Identity resolution involves verifying whether the claimed identity corresponds with a real-life person; evidence and attribute validation involves verifying whether provided evidence and attributes are authentic, accurate, and valid; finally identity enrollment allows RPs to link any authenticators associated with their verified identities to that verified identity.

Verification pathways for CSPs that use IAL3 may differ based on their policies, populations and threat environments. These include Non-Biometric Pathway, Biometric Pathway and the Combined Pathway.

IAL3 identity proofing

An effective IAL3 identity proofing solution must feature a mobile device capable of supporting multiple capture modalities and providing live iris/facial biometric comparison as well as supporting modern mobile operating systems – this will make the identification process faster and more secure.

An effective IAL3 solution should also feature the provision of a trustworthy referee who can address any issues during verification sessions and help find solutions to them. This helps avoid potential phishing attacks or any form of fraud.

IAL3 requirements are an effective defense against modern cyberattacks. IAL3 mandates require high assurance methods which prevent phishing attacks or any man-in-the-middle threats such as SMS-based verification processes from occurring.

NIST has established Identity Assurance Levels as a way of standardizing how digital identities are validated. At its highest assurance level IAL3 uses document validation, biometric comparison and direct oversight to confirm claimed identities.

IAL3 compliance

NIST 800-63A IAL3 digital identity guidelines define three levels of verification: IAL (Identity Authority Level), AAL (Authenticator Assurance Level) and FAL (Federated Assurance Level). Of these levels, IAL requires either physical presence in person or remote session supervision and biometric comparison for verification, with liveness detection to safeguard against spoofing attacks.

TrustSwiftly’s hardware IAL3 solution meets the highest compliance standards by inspecting identity documents and taking images to verify identities remotely. This process eliminates customer friction while simultaneously decreasing cyber attack risk, meeting KYC/AML regulations and saving businesses on travel expenses for in-person proofing sessions.

Your decision on where you store sensitive Personal Identification Information (PII) early on is of vital importance in meeting data breach laws. Strive for balance between keeping evidence to a minimum while purging evidence early in order to avoid data breaches and satisfy audits regarding non-repudiation.

IAL3 compliant solution

IAL3 is the highest level of identity assurance and requires more stringent proofing measures, including having a CSP representative interact directly with applicants during an on-site attended verification session to limit highly scalable attacks as well as protect against synthetic identities and exploited personal information.

TrustSwiftly innovative identity assurance platform directly assists organizations in attaining compliance with NIST guidelines and eliminates insecure password-based authentication methods. While its core structure of IAL, AAL and FAL has not changed significantly over time, each level has been modernized to align with current best practices and security standards – such as IAL3 now requiring antiphishing measures like FIDO Passkeys as well as officially supporting remote ID verification services.

TrustSwiftly’s IAL3 compliant solution provides an efficient and cost-effective means of meeting IAL3 requirements. Using mobile apps installed into self-service kiosks, which record face, document, biometric evidence while offering step-up reproofing according to risk, TrustSwiftly offers its IAL3 app that captures faces with high pixel counts to prevent biometric spoofing attacks.

NIST 800-63A IAL3: The Gold Standard of Digital Trust

Achieving NIST 800-63A IAL3 is widely considered the “final boss” of identity verification. As the highest tier of identity assurance, IAL3 is reserved for high-stakes environments—like FedRAMP High or privileged system access—where the cost of impersonation is catastrophic. Unlike lower levels, IAL3 mandates “superior” evidence, such as cryptographically verified ePassports, and requires either physical presence or a highly secure Supervised Remote Identity Proofing (SRIP) session.

This is where trustswiftly.com transforms a complex compliance hurdle into a seamless operational win. By utilizing hardware-anchored “Trusted Path” technology and live, operator-led verification, TrustSwiftly allows organizations to meet these rigorous standards without the logistical nightmare of physical office visits. Their platform integrates biometric liveness detection and NFC chip validation to ensure that the person behind the screen is truly who they claim to be. For modern enterprises, trustswiftly.com offers the most efficient path to cryptographic certainty, safeguarding your most sensitive data while keeping the user experience surprisingly human.