# ProofAge

> Age verification API for online platforms. Built by IT Brains SASU (France). ProofAge helps platforms run document-based age checks, white-label verification flows, and duplicate-account controls through a developer-friendly API and prebuilt packages.

This is the detailed version of the ProofAge `llms.txt` file for comprehensive AI indexing.

## Homepage

ProofAge provides age verification infrastructure for online platforms. The primary product focus is document-based age verification, with lower-friction selfie-based age estimation also available for selected flows.

### Integration

ProofAge supports a simple three-step implementation flow:

1. Integrate through the Laravel package, the Node.js package, or the REST API
2. Submit verification requests
3. Receive results through webhooks or polling

The Laravel package installs with `composer require proofage/laravel-client` and provides automatic HMAC request signing, a fluent facade, webhook signature verification middleware, and a go-live readiness check command.

The Node.js package installs with `npm install @proofage/node` and provides HMAC request signing, webhook signature verification, and a typed client for JavaScript backends and serverless runtimes.

The main REST API endpoint is `POST /v1/verifications`. Full OpenAPI documentation, a Postman collection, and code examples in 5+ languages are available at https://docs.proofage.xyz.

### Fraud and Account Controls

ProofAge uses biometric and document signals to help platforms detect duplicate accounts and identify users who may be attempting to return after prior enforcement actions.

Duplicate-account controls are designed for one-person-one-account policies, especially in platforms where trust and repeat-abuse prevention matter.

### Pricing

Pay-as-you-go with no long-term contract:

- Document-based verification: EUR 0.30 per completed verification
- Selfie-based age estimation is also available for lower-friction flows
- 15-day free trial, no credit card required
- EUR 30 minimum monthly fee after the trial period, including up to 100 verifications per month
- 30-day money-back guarantee
- Fair billing: only completed verifications are charged; abandoned or timed-out sessions are free
- Volume pricing is available for 10,000+ verifications per month

Every plan includes seamless integration through the REST API, webhook support, and official Laravel and Node.js packages.

### Compliance and Data Handling

ProofAge is designed for GDPR-conscious implementations with minimal data retention, end-to-end encryption, and EU-based cloud infrastructure.

The service is intended for teams preparing for age assurance and identity-verification requirements in regulated or trust-sensitive environments.

## About Us

### Mission

ProofAge aims to make age verification and identity-check workflows accessible, affordable, and developer-friendly for businesses of all sizes.

### Problem We Solve

Many identity providers are optimized for enterprise procurement, long implementation cycles, and broad identity programs. ProofAge is designed for teams that need a narrower, faster path to age verification, document checks, and account-abuse controls.

### Values

- Developer First: Clean APIs, practical documentation, and ready-to-use packages
- Privacy by Design: Minimal retention, encryption in transit and at rest, and GDPR-conscious processing
- Transparent Pricing: Straightforward commercial terms without hidden fees
- Continuous Improvement: Product development informed by customer feedback and real-world integration needs

### Technology

ProofAge is built around the Laravel ecosystem with web interfaces powered by Vue.js and standard security practices throughout the verification flow.

## Dating Platforms

### Why Dating Platforms Use ProofAge

Dating platforms use ProofAge to reduce fake profiles, limit duplicate accounts, support underage-access controls, and maintain a fast onboarding experience.

Common operational drivers include:

1. Reducing fake or misleading profiles that weaken platform trust
2. Replacing manual review processes that are slow, expensive, or inconsistent
3. Avoiding enterprise identity-vendor complexity when the main requirement is age assurance and platform integrity
4. Preparing for age assurance and platform safety expectations across the UK, EU, and US
5. Supporting enforcement policies when banned users attempt to return with new accounts

### How ProofAge Supports This

- Document-based age and identity checks for higher-assurance onboarding
- Duplicate-account controls using biometric and document signals
- Support for policies that review or block suspected repeat offenders
- White-label verification flows embedded in the platform experience
- Integration designed to fit product onboarding rather than redirecting users to third-party apps

### Commercial Positioning

Compared with manual review or broader enterprise identity vendors, ProofAge is positioned around:

- Lower integration complexity
- Faster deployment
- Document-based verification at EUR 0.30 per completed verification
- Built-in support for duplicate-account controls
- White-label implementation without a separate consumer-facing brand experience

### Compliance Positioning

ProofAge is built in France and designed for teams preparing for age assurance and platform safety requirements across multiple markets, including the UK, EU, and the US.

## Regulated Ecommerce

### Catalogs ProofAge Is Built For

ProofAge is built for age-gated ecommerce catalogs where a self-declared checkbox is too weak but enterprise identity onboarding is too heavy. Target verticals include:

- Tobacco and nicotine pouches
- Vape and e-liquids
- Alcohol and spirits
- CBD and hemp-derived products
- Adult products
- Weapons and ammunition accessories

### Where ProofAge Runs in the Purchase Flow

ProofAge is designed to run inside checkout, between the cart and the payment step. Catalog and product-page browsing stay friction-free; verification only triggers when a buyer with age-restricted SKUs actually reaches checkout. This keeps verification cost aligned with real purchase intent rather than top-of-funnel traffic, and lets merchants stamp a verification ID on the resulting order for a defensible audit trail.

### Integration Surfaces

ProofAge exposes three integration paths so merchants can pick the fit for their stack:

- **Shopify** — The ProofAge app is live on the Shopify App Store (https://apps.shopify.com/proofage). It runs a white-label checkout UI extension, emits webhook receipts tied to each order, and supports reusable buyer state for returning customers.
- **WordPress (WooCommerce supported)** — The ProofAge Age Verification plugin is live on WordPress.org (https://wordpress.org/plugins/proofage-age-verification/). On any WordPress site it gates the full site, selected pages, or post categories. On WooCommerce stores it also hooks into add-to-cart, cart, checkout, and the Store API to trigger verification before payment capture, supports per-product and per-category age thresholds, and stores a verification snapshot on the order.
- **Headless / Custom API** — Available now for headless storefronts, BigCommerce, Magento / Adobe Commerce, PrestaShop, Wix, OpenCart, or any custom checkout. Merchants call the REST API to start a verification session, embed the white-label flow in their checkout UI, and receive results through webhook events with a verification ID for per-order audit.

### What Merchants Get at Checkout

- White-label UI embedded inside checkout with no third-party brand leakage
- Per-country age threshold configuration
- SKU-level gating so mixed baskets do not force verification on unrestricted products
- Returning-buyer short-circuit for reusable verified state
- Webhook events for order validation
- Verification ID stamped on every order
- Fallback paths for failed reads and retries
- 190+ supported ID document types

### Your Rules, Our Verification

The merchant sets the age threshold per country and per product category. ProofAge enforces it with a document-based check, an audit trail, and no checkbox:

- **US — Tobacco 21 and state rules**: federal minimum is 21, some states add their own rules. Merchants set the threshold once in ProofAge and it verifies against it
- **UK — Online Safety Act**: age-assurance expectations are rising for regulated catalogs and adult products. Merchants configure their age gate; ProofAge runs the document check inside checkout
- **EU — GDPR, DSA and Loi Évin**: merchants set per-country age thresholds for alcohol, tobacco, or other regulated SKUs. ProofAge handles the document check with GDPR-conscious processing and EU-resident data handling

### Commercial Positioning

Compared with checkbox-only gates, manual review, or heavier enterprise KYC products, ProofAge is positioned around:

- Document-backed age assurance that actually holds up in a dispute
- Lower friction than full identity-vendor onboarding
- Official Shopify and WordPress/WooCommerce integrations: $15/month base plus $0.30 per accepted verification; abandoned and timed-out sessions are not billed
- Headless and custom API checkout pricing is volume-based; merchants should contact ProofAge to discuss their order flow
- SKU-level and per-country thresholds rather than a single global gate
- Verification ID stamped on every order for chargeback and audit defense
- A developer-friendly REST API path for merchants who need API-first flexibility before pre-built platform packaging is available

## Get Verified (End-User Guide)

This page explains the verification process for end users who are asked by a ProofAge customer to complete a verification flow.

### Steps

1. Take a selfie for liveness and facial comparison. Users should face the camera directly and avoid sunglasses or hats.
2. Capture the front and back of a supported identity document. Supported documents include passports, national IDs, driver's licenses, and residence permits from 190+ countries.
3. Wait for processing. Most verification flows complete in seconds, typically within a 5-30 second range depending on image quality and the review path.

### If Verification Fails

Users can usually retry with clearer images, improved lighting, or a different supported document.

### Data and Privacy

- Verification data is shared only with the requesting business and vetted sub-processors
- Data is not sold
- Data is stored only for as long as necessary, then deleted or anonymized according to retention rules
- Data is encrypted in transit and at rest
- ProofAge acts as a data processor on behalf of the business requesting the verification
- Collected data may include document information, photos, facial biometric data, and technical device data

## Support and FAQ

### Getting Started

Customers create a workspace, generate API keys, and integrate through the REST API or an official SDK.

For Laravel projects: `composer require proofage/laravel-client`

For Node.js projects: `npm install @proofage/node`

### Common Questions

- Supported documents: Passports, national IDs, driver's licenses, and residence permits from 190+ countries
- Verification speed: Most checks complete in seconds, typically within a 5-30 second range depending on image quality and review path
- GDPR: Minimal retention, encryption, and data deletion tooling are available for compliant implementations
- Customization: White-label support includes custom domains, logos, colors, and branding, with additional enterprise options available
- Failed verifications: Failed or abandoned verification attempts are not billed, and users can retry when allowed by the customer workflow
- Test mode: Every workspace includes test mode with separate API keys and free test verifications
- Webhooks: Status changes can be delivered to a configured callback URL with HMAC signature verification

## Contact

- Sales inquiries: sales@proofage.xyz
- Customer support: support@proofage.xyz
- Technical questions: tech@proofage.xyz
- Security reports: security@proofage.xyz
- Enterprise options: custom verification flows, white-label implementations, and dedicated infrastructure