OKLAHOMA CITY, Okla., Nov. 16, 2020 – Oklahoma Employment Security Commission (OESC) today released a list of tips and tricks to simplify the online identity verification process for individuals filing unemployment claims. OESC recently unveiled Verify OK in order to help process unemployment claims more quickly and securely.

To date, Verify OK has helped more than 65,000 Oklahoma residents file through the new unemployment claims process. For those that have not yet verified their identity, the commission encourages applicants to follow a few simple guidelines when uploading the required images of the applicant’s photo ID and face. These guidelines include:

Take each photo in a welllit area with no backlight.

When photographing an ID, residents should place their ID in their hand and ensure all edges, especially the four corners, are visible.

When photographing one’s face, residents should stand in front of a plain, singlecolored background, face the camera directly, have the camera at eye-level and ensure their face is unobstructed by sunglasses, a hat or their hair.

“OESC’s rollout of online identity verification is a huge leap forward, and we want to ensure that Oklahoma residents are able to verify their identity as quickly and efficiently as possible,” said Shelley Zumwalt, Executive Director at OESC. “By following these guidelines when uploading the required photos, OESC can provide unemployment benefits quicker than ever before, with an enhanced layer of security.”

This simplified unemployment solution is made possible by OESC’s partnership with IDEMIA, the global leader in augmented identity. Since the COVID-19 pandemic began, states have seen nearly $26 billion in unemployment fraud and spent several million more investigating cybercriminals. This technology was developed to combat fraud and ensure that residents can claim their benefits with ease.

For more tips and tricks, please visit https://content.govdelivery.com/accounts/OKESC/bulletins/2aa6711 or visit oesc.ok.gov for support.