ELECTRONIC VERIFICATION SERVICE SYSTEMS AND METHODS

Systems and methods for authenticating an applicant. In one implementation, the applicant indicates to an acquirer an existing account for which the applicant wishes to be authenticated. The acquirer sends a message over an electronic funds transfer (EFT) network to an issuer of the account requesting a set of questions to ask the applicant. The issuer replies with a set of questions. The acquirer asks the applicant the questions, and forwards the applicant's answers to the issuer. The issuer compares the answers with known information relating to the account and decides, based on the comparison, whether the applicant is authenticated. The issuer then communicates its decision to the acquirer. Preferably, the messages and their associated replies are added to the set of messages handled by the EFT network, so that authentication may be handled in a standardized way without proliferating applicants' secret information.