| Daon, Inc. | |
| Type: | Private |
| Foundation: | Dublin, Ireland, (1999) |
| Location City: | Fairfax, Virginia |
| Location Country: | U.S. |
| Industry: | Software & Biometrics |
| Products: | IdentityX VeriFLY DaonEngine |
Daon (pronounced day-on) is an international biometrics and identity assurance software company founded in 1999 by Irish entrepreneur Dermot Desmond. The name, Daon, was chosen because it stems from the Celtic word for human being, Irish: duine daonna.[1] Daon is headquartered just miles outside of Washington, DC in Fairfax, VA. Daon also has major operations in Dublin, located in the International Financial Services Center (IFSC). It has an additional offices in Belgrade, Serbia and Canberra, Australia.
In 2006, Daon and the American Association of Airport Executives (AAAE) entered into a joint venture to create the Security Biometric Clearing Network (SBCN) to provide services for biometric identity management, including enrollment, background checking, secure biometric and biographic information storage, and card issuance.[2]
In August 2008 Daon acquired software assets and associated personnel for physical security interconnectivity from Enterprise Air, a New York-based provider of solutions for the physical security market.[3]
In 2017 Daon launched the IdentityX for use by Visa, Mastercard, USAA, and BNP Paribus for security in digital banking.[4] In July 2019, Daon announced the update of its IdentityX Digital Onboarding 2.0, which sets a new industry standard for all-digital customer onboarding.[5]
In response to the COVID-19 Pandemic, and need to verify vaccination information prior to travel, Daon launched the VeriFLY app. In 2022 the app was used by Carnival Cruise Lines and American Airlines to digitally process passenger health information and complete the vaccination verification process.[6] [7]
Daon's products include IdentityX (their flagship biometric mobile authentication platform), DaonEngine, DaonEnroll, DaonAnalytics, and Credential Connect. Daon's biometric products integrate with preexisting IT platforms and applications to manage identity life-cycles. Daon serves multiple markets including mobile authentication, border management, civil ID, traveler ID, employee credentialing, and access control. Their software is used worldwide at airports and international borders[8] and supports U.S. Registered Traveler airports.[9]
IdentityX is a platform that allows users to authenticate themselves on any mobile device using biometrics instead of a password. IdentityX uses facial recognition, voice recognition, fingerprint, and more to prove a user is who they claim to be. In 2015, IdentityX was one of the first products to be certified by the FIDO alliance,[10] an industry consortium in which PayPal and Lenovo are among the founders. Also in 2015, Daon's IdentityX won NACUSO's Next Big Idea competition[11] as well as the Best in Show award from the CUNA Technology Council.[12]