British Council picks Daon TrustX for high-stakes test security

Daon will verify test takers from registration through in-test re-checks across global testing and digital education services.

The British Council will use Daon TrustX for identity verification across registration, test centers and in-test re-verification.

The British Council has selected Daon’s TrustX platform to verify test takers across its global testing and digital education services, adding identity checks at multiple points in a journey where results can affect immigration, education and employment decisions.

The agreement will cover registration, test center checks and re-verification during the testing process. Daon will provide identity verification through xProof, its TrustX capability for document checks, facial comparison, liveness detection and chip reading.

The deployment spans a British Council testing program accepted by governments in Australia, Canada and New Zealand, and recognized by more than 12,500 organizations, including immigration authorities, employers and higher education institutions.

The initial rollout will support millions of identity verification and facial authentication transactions over a multi-year term. The British Council also plans to extend the platform to additional services, including English Online.

For education and assessment providers, the decision is a move toward continuous identity assurance rather than a single check at enrollment.

Checks will run through the test journey

Daon’s TrustX platform will be used during registration, at test centers and at key points in the testing process, including face-match re-verification after breaks and during re-tests.

The platform combines automated verification with global 24/7 services, fraud detection and manual review fallback where required.

Anthony Nicols, Director of Product at the British Council, says: “Identity is the cornerstone for high stakes exams, and in Daon we’ve found a partner that helps us embed trust throughout the entire testing journey,” said Anthony Nicols, Director of Product at the British Council. “This strengthens the integrity of our results while delivering a more secure and consistent experience for test takers globally."

The British Council is a UK public body founded in 1934 and governed by Royal Charter.

That scale makes identity assurance more than an operational issue. The British Council’s test results are used by organizations that make cross-border decisions about study, work and immigration.

Procurement tested identity standards

The British Council selected Daon after a multi-phase procurement process covering identity verification technology and services. Vendors had to meet strict requirements, including certification under the UK Digital Identity and Attributes Trust Framework.

The tender also assessed providers on biometric authentication, document validation, global support, consultancy and operational best practice.

Daon says TrustX will allow the British Council to orchestrate identity verification across channels, use cases and geographies. The deployment is also intended to reduce fraud across digital services where remote and high-integrity testing are becoming more important.

Tom Grissen, CEO of Daon, links the British Council deployment to a shift away from one-off identity checks: “Organizations like the British Council operate at a scale where identity is more than just a security function.

“It’s what underlines trust in the institution and the services it provides. This deployment reflects something we’re seeing across multiple sectors, where identity verification is becoming an ongoing, integrated part of the user journey rather than a single, static checkpoint. Platforms like TrustX are designed to enable organizations to orchestrate identity across channels, use cases, and geographies without adding friction for users.”

The British Council rollout will begin with millions of identity verification and facial authentication transactions over a multi-year term. The planned extension to English Online would take Daon TrustX beyond testing and into another part of the British Council’s digital education portfolio.