– September 2, 2020The insurance regulator in India has approved the use of video-based KYC for new customers. The permission to use the video-based identification process was to increase the ease of performing KYC for onboarding customers, especially during the current Covid-19 pandemic in the country. Through this method, a representative of the insurance provider will undertake real-time, consent-based audio-visual interaction while onboarding the new customer. This will help the representative get the identification details, which includes the mandatory documents and to confirm the authenticity of the information provided by the customer. The Insurance Regulatory and Development Authority (IRDA) said in a letter to insurance companies in India to use the video-based method to identify the new customer and leverage the use of digital platforms for verification purposes. The representative of the insurance company shall record the audio-video interaction and capture a live photograph of the customer and procure identification details. The system will also capture the live location of the customer otherwise known as geotagging. The photograph should match that of the customer’s Aadhaar.