# Facial Recognition Methods

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Truora's face validation system incorporates two main methods for facial recognition. The first and simplest one is ***similarity***, which compares the reference picture with a selfie of the individual. The second and more sophisticated one is ***passive liveness***, which compares the reference picture with a short non-guided video of the individual to detect if it pertains to a live person.

## Similarity

The **similarity** method is designed to compare the facial features of a submitted selfie with those of a stored reference image. This process focuses solely on verifying that the two images belong to the same person by analyzing and matching specific facial characteristics.

**Use Case**: Typically used in scenarios where confirming the identity of the user is the primary concern. For instance, when a user logs into an account using facial recognition, the system compares the new selfie to the reference image stored during account creation.

## Passive liveness

The **passive liveness** method goes beyond simple facial feature comparison. It involves comparing a reference image with a non-guided short video to ensure that the submitted media is from a live person and not a photograph or video replay. This method checks for subtle movements, changes in lighting, and reflections that are indicative of a live subject.

**Benefits**:
- There is no need to perform any kind of actions in the video, making the process seamless and user-friendly.
- Prevents print, replay, 3d masks and deepfake videos attacks.
- Increases the security of the identity verification.
- Keeps the verification process simple, secure and fast.

**Use Case**: Passive liveness is crucial in high-security environments where preventing spoofing attacks is essential. It ensures not only that the facial features match but also that the user is physically present at the time of verification.

## Activating passive liveness and/or similarity

>Currently, we have two parameters for activating face validation methods: ``subvalidations`` and ``liveness`` (soon to be deprecated). Please ensure to use only one of these parameters and note that ``liveness`` will be deprecated soon. If you are still using the old parameter and have questions after reading this guide, please **Contact Support**.

### New Parameter

To set the ``subvalidations`` parameter:

In the {{< newtab href="../face_validation_api/#4-create-validation" >}}Create Validation{{< /newtab >}} body request for face validation, use the following:

- **Default value (similarity)**: Omit the ``subvalidations`` parameter or set it to ``similarity`` to perform face validation using **similarity**.
    - ``subvalidations``: ``similarity``
- **Passive Liveness**: Set the ``subvalidations`` parameter to ``passive_liveness`` to perform face validation using **passive liveness**.
    - ``subvalidations``: ``passive_liveness``
- **Using both methods**: You can combine both methods by setting ``subvalidations`` to include both ``similarity`` and ``passive_liveness``.
    - ``subvalidations``: ``passive_liveness``
    - ``subvalidations``: ``similarity``

### Old Parameter (soon to be deprecated)

To set the ``liveness`` parameter:

In the {{< newtab href="../face_validation_api/#4-create-validation" >}}Create Validation{{< /newtab >}} body request for face validation, use the following:

- **Default value (similarity)**: Omit the ``liveness`` parameter or set it to ``disabled`` to perform face validation using **similarity**.
    - ``liveness``: ``disabled``
- **Passive Liveness and Similarity**: Set the ``liveness`` parameter to ``passive`` to perform face validation using both **passive liveness** and **similarity**.
    - ``liveness``: ``passive``