The global benchmarkfordocument integrity& verifiable issuance.
A transparent, source-cited score of how far each nation's documents can be trusted — and how mature its verification infrastructure is. Built in the open, published in annual volumes.
Every day, credentials, certificates, and official records cross borders with no shared way to judge how reliable a given country's issuance and verification systems are. Fraud thrives in that gap.
The Index scores each nation on the maturity of its document-integrity infrastructure — not to name and shame, but to make the gaps visible and measurable, so they can be closed. A low score is a roadmap, not a verdict.
Its method is built in the open and its sources are public, so the score is something a journalist, a regulator, or a procurement team can cite with confidence. The methodology comes first — the scores follow.
The method is the product. So we're publishing it before a single score.
Each country will be scored 0–100 across five weighted dimensions, every indicator traceable to a named public source. Here is exactly how — open to scrutiny from day one.
Fraud prevalence
Reported incidence of forged credentials, certificates, and identity documents.
Verification infrastructure
Availability of registries and tools to confirm a document against its issuer.
Regulatory framework
Maturity of laws governing issuance, e-signature, and document admissibility.
Verifiable issuance
Uptake of tamper-evident, digitally verifiable issuance over paper originals.
Enforcement record
Track record of investigating and prosecuting document-fraud offences.
The full spec — indicator frameworks, scoring model, robustness & uncertainty, and a stated-limits section. Open access; we'll email you the PDF.
Dimension scores are normalised against a published rubric, multiplied by their fixed weights, and summed into a single composite. A higher score means more mature, harder-to-forge, more verifiable document infrastructure.
Where will the data come from?
Public, citable sources only — regulatory filings, government registries, international integrity indices, academic studies, and reported enforcement actions. We aggregate and score them against a consistent rubric; the score itself is the original, citable asset.
Is a low score an accusation of fraud?
No. The Index measures infrastructure maturity, not national character. A low score reflects addressable gaps in verification, regulation, or digital issuance — a roadmap a country can act on.
How often will it be updated?
Annually, as numbered continental volumes. Re-scoring each year produces year-over-year movement — the longitudinal record of which nations are closing the gap.
A global benchmark, rolled out in annual continental volumes.
Each volume is scored to full depth before it ships — breadth never bought at the cost of rigour. The architecture is global; the editions are focused.
Africa
56 nations, scored to full depth, Nigeria-anchored. Methodology public now; results in preparation.
Scoring underwayUnited States
State-level document-integrity profiles, built to align with title, escrow, and mortgage verification needs.
NextUnited Kingdom & Europe
Awarding bodies, registries, and cross-border credential recognition.
PlannedAsia, Middle East, Americas
Continental volumes added on the annual cycle until global coverage is complete.
PlannedBuilt to be trusted, not bought.
An index that scores nations is only worth citing if it cannot be influenced. These commitments are fixed from day one — before a single country is scored.
Methodology first
Dimensions and weights are published in full and frozen before any country is scored — the goalposts can't move once results are seen.
Never pay-to-play
No government, institution, or company can pay to raise, lower, or remove a score. Ratings are not for sale, at any price.
Walled off from commercial
Scoring is separated from VerifyDoc.ai's sales and commercial operations. Being a customer confers no advantage in the Index.
Self-funded, stated openly
The Index is funded by VerifyDoc.ai. There are no external sponsors, and no funder sees or shapes results before publication.
CC BY 4.0
All scores released as open data — free to reuse and republish with attribution.
Contest & correct
Any scored party may query its result through a published process; corrections are logged openly.
Annual, fixed window
Published on a set date each year, so each edition is anticipated — not sporadic.
Methodology v1.0
Every edition cites a dated, versioned methodology. Changes are tracked, never silent.
Independent experts are invited to pressure-test the methodology before Volume I.
Reviewers examine the dimensions, weights, and sources — and hold the Index to account. Each is named and credited in every published edition, and seats are open now.
How to cite the Index.
The methodology is published open access with a permanent DOI — cite it today. The Volume I dataset will carry its own citation on release.
Authored by Edoka Idoko; published by VerifyDoc.ai and archived on Zenodo under CC BY 4.0. The Volume I dataset citation and full media kit accompany the Volume I release.
Be first to see Volume I.
Methodology is live. The scores are coming. Get them the day they land.