How verification works
From registration to verification.
Follow the document through the Kweli portal: the issuer registers it, adds its QR and downloads the final version. The recipient then checks the QR record and the exact file.
For the issuer
Create the issued document
STEP 01
Register the source document
An approved issuer signs in, selects its document and confirms the fields it wants recipients to check. Kweli records the source file's fingerprint.
STEP 02
Add the Kweli QR
The portal creates a unique proof ID and QR. The issuer places the QR on the document, linking it to its hosted proof record.
STEP 03
Issue and download the final file
Kweli fingerprints the final QR-bearing version and the issuer issues it. That is the file to download and send onward.
For the recipient
Check what you received
STEP 04
Scan the QR
The recipient opens the Kweli proof page and compares the issuer and registered fields with the document in hand. Finding the record does not prove that this copy is unchanged.
STEP 05
Verify the document
The recipient selects the final digital file. Kweli fingerprints it on their device and compares it with the issued final version: exact match, mismatch or no issued record found.
The QR proves a record exists under the issuer. The file check proves an exact match to its final issued version.
The sample checker below demonstrates the final file comparison using local sample PDFs. It does not register a document, generate a QR or query the live registry.
Drop a sample document here
or select a sample PDF you downloaded below
This sample check fingerprints the file in your browser. It is never uploaded.
Understanding the Results
Every check ends in one of three states.
Fingerprint matches. This document is identical to the version originally registered by its issuer.
The uploaded document does not match the registered fingerprint. It may have been modified, corrupted or replaced.
No issued record was found for this reference or file. The result alone cannot tell you why.
What Kweli Verifies
The documents decisions depend on.
These are examples of documents an authorised issuer could register. This page's checker uses sample files; live records are checked in the portal.
Privacy & Security
Built to protect, not to collect.
Original documents are never stored.
Only cryptographic fingerprints are registered.
Verification protects document integrity.
Minimal metadata — nothing more than needed.
Enterprise-ready architecture.
An Important Distinction
What Kweli verifies — and what it doesn’t.
Kweli verifies
- Document integrity
- Document authenticity
- Issuer registration
- Tampering
Kweli does not verify
- Whether information inside the document is true
- Business decisions
- Creditworthiness
- Medical accuracy
- Legal validity
Frequently Asked Questions
Questions we hear most.
Scan the Kweli QR to open the issuer's proof record and compare its key details with the document. To check an exact digital copy, select the file: Kweli computes its fingerprint locally and compares it with the final issued version. The file itself is not uploaded for this check.
Whether a document genuinely originates from the issuer it claims to. Kweli establishes this by comparing a presented document's fingerprint against the one its issuer registered at the time of issuance.
Whether a document is unchanged since it was issued. Even a single altered character produces a completely different fingerprint, so integrity is either fully intact or it isn't — there's no partial match.
No. Kweli never stores the original document. Only its cryptographic fingerprint and minimal metadata are registered — the file itself never leaves your browser during verification.
Yes, easily. Text, figures and images in a PDF can be edited with common software in minutes, and the result looks identical to the original to anyone viewing it. PDF format has no built-in way to prove it hasn't changed since it was issued — that's the specific gap Kweli closes.
A recipient can open the QR proof record without contacting the issuer. An account may be needed for an exact-file check in the Kweli portal.
Any change to the final digital file changes its fingerprint. With a known proof ID, an exact-file check can show that the presented copy does not match the registered one.
The presented file does not exactly match the final file registered under that proof. It may have been edited, re-saved, corrupted or replaced. The result alone does not identify the cause.
Digital signatures and Kweli can work together. Kweli records an approved issuer's proof details and the fingerprint of the final issued file, then offers a hosted record and exact-file check to recipients.
No. A ledger can help show that a recorded proof was not changed later. The issuer's identity and issuance process still matter. Kweli's QR record and exact-file check are useful even where chain anchoring is pending.
Kweli is built as an independent trust layer that fits alongside the systems an organisation already uses, rather than replacing them. Integration specifics are worked out together, based on the systems and workflow involved.
Kweli returns Document Not Found when it cannot locate an issued proof for the reference or file supplied. Check the proof ID and ask the claimed issuer if the record should exist.
Chain anchoring can provide an additional tamper-evident record. It is not required for the basic QR record and exact-file check, and it should only be described as completed when a transaction is confirmed.