Verification System

1 Three core principles

The X-PEN ID verification system rests on three principles. Every method, every fee, every badge, and every decision in this document follows from these three.

The three principles

Persistent identity — once an X-PEN ID is associated with real, verified contributions, the identifier is preserved for the long term.
Contributor-owned record — every entry on a profile is added and maintained by the contributor themselves. XRC and X-PEN ID never add content on a contributor's behalf.
Layered verification — truth is not established by a single method. Identity, credentials, and claims are each verified through multiple paths that reinforce each other.

Verification is performed by the XRC Verification Team together with Level 3 contributor verifiers, automated checks, and the broader contributor community. Every action is auditable. Every contributor — including XRC members themselves — passes through the same rules.

2 The process at a glance

Verification happens in two clear steps, in this order:

Step 1 — Identity verification. The contributor proves they are a real person, and that the name on the profile matches the person behind it.
Step 2 — Credential verification. Each entry on the profile (jobs, education, certificates, specializations, etc.) is verified individually against the relevant employer, institution, or registry.

Identity verification always comes first. No credential is verified before the person behind the profile is.

3 When verification begins

Verification is not available the moment a contributor signs up. A profile must first move from empty to active — and there must be something on the profile worth verifying.

Prerequisites

The profile is in the active state (see Account Lifecycle § Empty vs. active)
The profile has at least one credential of any type — education, employment, internship, certificate, specialization, award, membership, event, or course

Why "any one credential" — not specifically education or employment
X-PEN ID is for every kind of contributor — researchers, professionals, writers, artists, independent practitioners, community contributors. A formal degree or formal job is not a requirement. A single verifiable entry of any kind is enough to begin the verification journey.

4 Step 1 — Identity verification

Identity verification confirms the contributor is a real person and that the name on the profile is theirs. Three methods are available — any one of them is sufficient.

XRC internal verification Automated + XRC

X-PEN ID's internal auto-system checks multiple identity signals in parallel — public records, cross-platform consistency, official-domain confirmations, prior verifications, and other auditable signals
Where signals converge clearly on a real, single individual, identity can be confirmed without further document submission
Particularly useful for well-known public figures whose identity is already documented across multiple authoritative sources
Final confirmation is reviewed by the XRC team before the badge is issued

Government ID with selfie photo Document

Government-issued national ID, passport, or driving license
Selfie photo matching the photo on the ID
XRC team checks document validity, face match, and name alignment with the profile

Government ID with selfie video Document

Same as the photo method, with a short selfie video instead of a photo
Provides additional liveness assurance
Used where photo-only verification is inconclusive or where the contributor prefers stronger proof

Level 3 contributor verification Volunteer

Level 3 (or higher) X-PEN ID contributors can verify the identity of other contributors
Operates under the Levels & Stone System and the Level 3 verifier policy
Particularly useful for well-known figures whose identity is publicly evident

University / organization direct verification Institutional

Universities, employers, and other organizations onboarded to X-PEN ID can directly verify the identity of their own people
Useful for students, employees, faculty, and members the institution already knows and has on record
Confirmation comes from the institution's authorized admin, recorded against both the contributor's profile and the institution's record
The institution itself stands behind the identity

Documents are not retained
Government ID images and selfies submitted for verification are reviewed by the XRC Verification Team and then deleted as per Levels & Privacy Policy. They are not stored on the profile, never shown publicly, and never shared with third parties.

5 Step 2 — Credential verification

Once identity is verified, every credential on the profile is verified individually. Each entry — every job, every degree, every certificate — passes through one of five paths.

XRC direct outreach

Default · Manual

The XRC team contacts the relevant employer or institution through their official email and confirms the credential — current or past, e.g., the contributor "is" or "was" affiliated with the organization.

Email to HR, registrar, or department's official address
Standardized verification request — only role and dates
Default path when no faster method is available

Level 3 contributor verification

Community-driven

Level 3 (or higher) contributors verify credentials under the Level 3 verifier policy — useful where they have direct, verifiable knowledge of the credential.

Former colleague, co-author, or faculty peer
Operates under the Levels & Stone System
Each verification is logged against the verifier's record

Pre-existing official records

Authoritative · Online

If a credential is already verified by a recognized authority and accessible online, XRC checks that record directly.

Apostille (Hague Convention)
National-level academic or professional verification bodies
Online-accessible official registries
Different countries operate different bodies; X-PEN ID works with whichever is officially recognized in the relevant jurisdiction

Onboarded organizations

Two-way · Bilateral

Universities, companies, journals, and other organizations onboarded to X-PEN ID directly verify the credentials of their own people — students, employees, alumni, members.

Institution receives a notification when a contributor claims affiliation
Admin can confirm, decline, or request more info
Both the contributor's profile and the institution's record show the verified relationship

Official-domain email confirmation

Automated · OTP

If the contributor adds an official email to a credential entry — for example, a faculty email at the institution they claim to work at — the system sends a one-time code to that email.

OTP sent to the institutional email
Successful confirmation auto-verifies the specific entry
The domain must reasonably match the institution involved

6 What is verified, what isn't

Not every type of profile entry is verified by X-PEN ID. The verification system focuses on credentials where a recognized institution or authority can confirm the claim.

Verified through this system

Jobs & employment
Internships
Education (degrees, diplomas)
Certificates
Specializations
Awards
Memberships
Events
Courses

Not verified by X-PEN ID

Publications
Books
Articles
Bio text
Contact details (additional email, phone, links)
Self-reported skills not tied to a credential

Publications, books, and articles are out of scope on purpose — they are recorded against the contributor's X-PEN ID but not independently verified by XRC. Contributors are encouraged to use stable external identifiers (DOI, ISBN, ORCID linkage) on those entries.

7 Free verification

Most verification on X-PEN ID is free. The free track uses every layer of the system — community input, Level 3 volunteers, the XRC auto-system, and the XRC manual team.

Community signals — public reports, attestations, and patterns observed across the platform feed into XRC's review
Level 3 volunteer verification — verified senior contributors review identity and credential claims
XRC auto-system — automated checks against onboarded organizations, official-domain OTP, and online registries
XRC manual team — direct outreach to employers and institutions, manual document review, public-figure recognition checks

Typical timing

Free verification timing varies depending on which path completes first. Typical range: 3 to 18 months, depending on circumstances. Factors that affect timing include:

Completeness of submitted documents and entry data
Responsiveness of the relevant employer or institution
Country and region of the credential issuer
Availability of Level 3 volunteer verifiers
Backlog and queue position at XRC

8 Fast verification

For contributors who need verification quickly, X-PEN ID offers a fast track for a flat one-time fee.

Fee: $15 USD, one-time, per identity verification
Method: Government ID + selfie or video, processed by the XRC team directly
Typical timing: 48 hours to 15 days, depending on circumstances
Result: Identical to free verification — there is no separate "premium" badge

Money buys speed, not status
A contributor who pays for fast verification receives exactly the same verified status as one who waits through the free track. Fees buy speed and ease, never credibility. The verified badge does not distinguish how it was earned.

XRC does not depend on any specific external KYC provider for fast verification. Whether the team uses internal review, an external service, or a combination, the outcome and the badge are identical.

9 Verified badges

X-PEN ID uses a graded badge system. Verification is not a single yes/no flag — every verified element on a profile carries its own badge.

A badge appears next to each verified credential on the profile — a verified job, a verified degree, a verified certificate, and so on
A profile-level badge appears next to the contributor's name once identity is verified
A reader can see at a glance which specific entries are verified and which are self-attested

The presence of the profile-level badge plus Level 1 indicates that the contributor is a real, verified person on the platform. Higher levels and the stone system carry additional meaning and are defined separately on the Levels & Stone System page.

10 Revocation & ongoing review

Verification is not permanent. A verified status can be revoked if XRC later confirms a problem.

Reports against a verified contributor are reviewed by XRC the same way any report is — see Reporting violations
If XRC confirms identity misrepresentation, fabricated credentials, or other integrity issues, the verified status is revoked
Where the violation is serious, the contributor's account may be suspended, terminated, or recorded on the Public Integrity Register
Revocation can apply to a single credential (one fabricated entry removed) or to the entire profile

Verification is a current statement of trust based on what XRC and the community have confirmed at the time of review. New evidence can change the picture.

11 Community & public reporting

Verification on X-PEN ID is not done by XRC alone. The contributor community is part of the system.

Public reports — anyone can flag a profile, a credential, or a pattern of misuse using the in-platform "Report this profile" button or the alternative reporting channels
Volunteer verifiers — the broader public also functions as a check on verified profiles; reports from verified contributors carry weight in XRC's review
Level 3 contributors — designated senior contributors can perform identity and credential verification under the Level 3 verifier policy

Full reporting channels and procedures are documented in Account Lifecycle § Reporting violations. Frivolous and bad-faith reports are themselves a violation.

12 Contributor responsibility

Verification works only when the contributor does their part. The platform records and verifies — but the source of every entry is the contributor.

Add your own data. X-PEN ID and XRC do not enter credentials on anyone's behalf. Every job, degree, certificate, and specialization is added by the contributor.
Add it accurately. Fabricating any entry is a serious violation under Acceptable Use and is grounds for termination.
Keep it current. When a job ends, when a new degree is earned, when an affiliation changes — update the profile.
Use originals. Cite real publications, real institutions, real awards. Do not import fake or unverifiable items.
Report problems. If you see fraud, impersonation, or a verified profile that no longer matches reality, report it.

X-PEN ID is not liable for fake content posted by contributors
X-PEN ID and XRC do not author profile content. Where a contributor has posted false or fraudulent material, the platform is not responsible for the content itself — but takes strict action against the contributor as soon as the issue is confirmed: revocation of verified status, suspension, termination, and entry on the Public Integrity Register where appropriate.

13 The verification flow

Every verification request follows the same five-step process — whether free, fast, automated, or manual:

Submit Contributor submits claim with required evidence

Triage System routes to the appropriate path (1–5)

Review Automated check, Level 3 review, or XRC team confirmation

Decide Approve, decline, or request additional evidence

Record Outcome logged; profile updated; contributor notified

14 Payment integrity

Verification on X-PEN ID is protected from bribery and side-channel payments. XRC does not demand money beyond the published fast-verification fee. Level 3 verifiers do not demand money under any circumstances.

If anyone — claiming to be from XRC, claiming to be a Level 3 verifier, or claiming to be able to "speed up" or "guarantee" verification — asks for payment outside the official channels, that is fraud. Report it.

The full policy, official payment channels, what to do if approached for a bribe, and consequences are documented on the Payment Integrity & Anti-Bribery page.

15 Sustainability

X-PEN ID is built to last. Maintaining a persistent identifier system, running verification at scale, and supporting a global community of contributors all carry real, ongoing costs.

Most of the platform is and remains free for individual contributors — account creation, profile, credential entries, public reporting, and the free verification track. A small number of optional services and partnerships fund the rest of the system:

Optional fast verification for contributors who need quicker turnaround
Organizational membership for universities, companies, journals, and publishers that integrate with X-PEN ID
API and integration access for systems that consume verified contributor data

This balance keeps the core platform open while ensuring the verification infrastructure that protects every contributor's record can continue to operate. Specific pricing and organizational plans are published separately.

16 Contact

For questions about verification, appeals, or any specific situation:

Verification, suspensions & appeals — verify@xpenid.com
Reporting fraud or bribery — verify@xpenid.com
General questions — Contact form
Legal & compliance — legal@xpenid.com

Related policies and references:

Account lifecycle & reporting Payment integrity & anti-bribery Levels & stone system