Anthropic Now Requires Government ID for Some Claude Users

Anthropic has begun requiring users to submit government-issued photo identification through third-party verification service Persona before accessing certain Claude features, a policy change that has drawn sharp criticism from customers concerned about the security of their personal data.

The new requirement, detailed in a support page published on April 12, prompts users to provide a physical government ID such as a passport or driver's license, along with a live selfie taken via webcam or phone camera. Anthropic said the verification may be triggered when accessing specific capabilities, during routine platform integrity checks, or for "safety and compliance measures." Some users have reported being prompted when attempting to subscribe to Claude's paid tiers.

Anthropic ID Verification | What the Policy Requires

The verification flow redirects users to Persona, a San Francisco-based identity platform used by companies including Square, Postmates, and several cryptocurrency exchanges. Users are asked to photograph both sides of a government-issued document and then capture a live image of their face for biometric matching.

Anthropic's support documentation states that the process is necessary to "verify the identity of users accessing certain features or services" and that data collected by Persona is governed by Persona's own privacy policy, not Anthropic's. The company did not specify which Claude features trigger the requirement, leaving users to encounter the prompt without prior warning.

The documentation also notes that verification may be requested more than once, including during what Anthropic calls "periodic re-verification checks," though no timeline for those checks has been published.

User Backlash | Privacy and Security Concerns

The policy has generated significant pushback across developer forums, social media, and privacy advocacy communities. Critics have raised three primary objections.

Data breach exposure: Submitting a passport or driver's license to a third-party vendor creates a new attack surface. Identity documents are among the most valuable targets for cybercriminals, and Persona's data retention policies, while compliant with SOC 2 and GDPR frameworks, do not guarantee that documents are deleted after verification is complete.

Scope creep: Users who signed up for Claude as a productivity or coding tool did not anticipate being asked for biometric data. Several developers on Hacker News and Reddit noted that the requirement appears disproportionate for an AI chat service, comparing it unfavorably to KYC requirements in financial services where identity verification is legally mandated.

Lack of transparency: Anthropic has not published a clear list of which features or actions trigger the verification prompt. Users report being blocked mid-session without explanation, then redirected to Persona with no option to continue using Claude until verification is complete.

Anthropic Safety Rationale | Why the Company Says It Is Necessary

Anthropic has framed the requirement as part of its broader commitment to AI safety. The company's Responsible Scaling Policy outlines a tiered system of safety measures that escalate as model capabilities increase. Identity verification for users accessing advanced features aligns with that framework, particularly for capabilities that could be misused for fraud, social engineering, or other adversarial purposes.

A spokesperson for Anthropic said the company is "committed to balancing access with safety" and that identity verification is "one of several tools we use to ensure our products are used responsibly." The company did not respond to follow-up questions about how long Persona retains user documents or whether users can request deletion of their biometric data after verification.

Persona Verification | How the Third-Party Service Works

Persona operates as an identity-as-a-service platform, providing document verification, biometric matching, and fraud detection to enterprise clients. The company processes identity checks for clients across fintech, healthcare, and now AI. Persona's standard flow captures a high-resolution image of the identity document, extracts machine-readable data (name, date of birth, document number), and compares the live selfie against the document photo using facial recognition algorithms.

According to Persona's privacy policy, identity data may be retained for up to three years depending on the client's configuration and applicable law. Users can submit a data deletion request, but the timeline for processing those requests is described only as "reasonable."

Industry Context | AI Platforms and Identity Verification in 2026

Anthropic is not the first AI company to explore identity verification, but it is the first major foundation model provider to require government ID for access to a consumer-facing product. OpenAI has used phone number verification and payment method validation for its paid tiers but has not required photo ID. Google's Gemini and Meta's AI products rely on existing platform account verification rather than standalone identity checks.

The move comes as regulators in the EU and UK are considering whether AI platforms should be subject to know-your-customer rules similar to those applied to financial institutions. Anthropic's preemptive adoption of ID verification could position the company favorably with regulators, but risks alienating the developer and enterprise customers who generate the majority of its revenue.

As of April 16, Anthropic has not announced any plans to expand the ID requirement to all users or to make it a condition of free-tier access.