Half of US states are now using facial recognition software from this little-known company to vet unemployment claims

After being let go from his job as a software quality-assurance engineer in April, Eric Watkins said he filed for unemployment benefits in Colorado. But he hasn't received a penny of the $6,490 he said he was eligible receive and he's not sure when he will.

Watkins, a self-described privacy advocate whose mother and grandmother shredded personal information when he was growing up, said he is unwilling to complete the identity verification process his state now requires, which includes having his face analyzed by a little-known company called ID.me. He sent a sharply worded letter to his state's unemployment agency criticizing ID.me's service, saying he would not take part in it given his privacy concerns. In response, he received an automated note from the agency: "If you do not verify your identity soon, your claim will be disqualified and no further benefit payments will be issued." (A spokesperson for the Colorado Department of Labor and Employment said the agency only allows manual identity verification "as a last resort" for unemployment claimants who are under 18 — because ID.me doesn't work with minors — and those who have "technological barriers.")