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Cybersecurity · head to head

IDnow vs Semperis

IDnow logo

IDnow

Cybersecurity

Identity verification and qualified electronic signature for regulated European markets

From
On request
Rated
-
Full reviewWebsite
Semperis logo

Semperis

Cybersecurity

Identity threat detection and Active Directory forest recovery for AD, Entra ID and Okta, from a privately held US vendor.

From
On request
Rated
-
Full reviewWebsite

The short version

  • Each has a real cost: IDnow agent-led video identification costs several times an automated check and depends on agent availability, so peak-time queues push abandonment up at exactly the moment conversion matters.; Semperis scope is limited to Active Directory, Entra ID and Okta, so an organisation whose critical identity lives elsewhere gets little from it, and the recovery value declines in direct proportion to how much has already moved off on-premises AD.
  • They diverge on capability: IDnow covers VideoIdent, Semperis covers Active Directory Forest Recovery.
  • Prices and features above were last checked on 1 September 2026.

Where they differ

Only the attributes on which IDnow and Semperis actually diverge.

Attributes where IDnow and Semperis differ
AttributeIDnowSemperis
PlatformsWeb, iOS, Android, APIWeb

Identical on both: starting price (On request), pricing model (quote), free tier (No), user rating (Not yet rated), category (Cybersecurity).

What each one covers

Drawn from each product's published feature list. An absence here means we hold no record of it - not that the product lacks it.

Only in IDnow

  • VideoIdent
  • AutoIdent
  • eSign
  • eID and NFC
  • Bank identification
  • EU data processing

Only in Semperis

  • Active Directory Forest Recovery
  • Malware-free restore
  • Replication-stream monitoring
  • Automated rollback
  • Attack indicator scoring
  • Entra ID and Okta coverage
  • Purple Knight
  • Forest Druid

What people use each for

The jobs each tool is most often brought in to do.

IDnow

  • A German bank opening regulated accounts where BaFin requires a recognised identification methodnot Semperis
  • An insurer needing a qualified electronic signature that will survive challenge in a European courtnot Semperis
  • A telecom operator meeting national SIM registration identity rules across several EU statesnot Semperis
  • A lender wanting automated checks for low-risk applicants and video identification only for high-value casesnot Semperis

Semperis

  • An organisation that cannot answer an auditor or insurer asking how long it would take to rebuild Active Directory after a destructive attacknot IDnow
  • Post-incident recovery where domain controllers are compromised and restoring from system-state backup would reintroduce the attacker's footholdnot IDnow
  • Continuous detection of privileged group changes and directory-level tampering that domain controller security logs missnot IDnow
  • Hybrid estates where AD, Entra ID and Okta all matter and no single tool currently shows changes across the threenot IDnow

Where each one falls short

Documented limitations, not opinions. Every one is a constraint you would hit in normal use.

IDnow

  • Agent-led video identification costs several times an automated check and depends on agent availability, so peak-time queues push abandonment up at exactly the moment conversion matters.
  • Pricing is quoted with an annual volume commitment, so the accreditation advantage comes with a floor you pay whether or not you use it.
  • The product is optimised for European regulatory regimes, so buyers verifying users in North America, Asia or Africa will find coverage and cost less competitive than global specialists.
  • Qualified electronic signature is a separate licence from identity verification, which surprises buyers who assumed the accredited identity check made the signature capability included.
  • Integration for the regulated flows is heavier than a simple SDK drop-in because the compliant journey, including consent and recording requirements, constrains the user experience you can build.

Semperis

  • Scope is limited to Active Directory, Entra ID and Okta, so an organisation whose critical identity lives elsewhere gets little from it, and the recovery value declines in direct proportion to how much has already moved off on-premises AD.
  • The licence buys tooling, not a proven runbook: forest recovery is only worth what your last rehearsal demonstrated, and a plan that has never been executed end to end in a lab is an untested assumption regardless of what was purchased.
  • It overlaps with backup and directory management products from Quest, Veeam, Commvault and others, so the buyer must argue internally why a dedicated product is needed alongside a backup contract that already claims to protect Active Directory.
  • Running Directory Services Protector well requires someone who understands AD internals, replication metadata and Tier 0 attack paths, and without that person the alerts on privileged changes are either ignored or auto-reverted in ways that break legitimate administration.
  • Licensing is driven by identity object counts, so directories carrying years of stale user accounts and service principals pay for objects that should have been deleted, and the cleanup project that would reduce the bill is the one nobody has time for.

Pricing, plan by plan

IDnow

On request
  • IDnow Platform$undefined/year
    • Per-identification pricing that differs sharply between automated and agent-led methods
    • Annual volume commitment typically required
    • Qualified electronic signature licensed separately

Semperis

On request

No published plan breakdown. See the Semperis review.

Which should you pick?

Choose IDnow if

  • You need videoident.
  • You work on Web, iOS, Android, API.
  • You also want autoident.
IDnow review

Choose Semperis if

  • You need active directory forest recovery.
  • You also want malware-free restore.
Semperis review

Questions people ask

Is IDnow or Semperis better?
Neither clearly leads. IDnow starts at On request and Semperis at On request, and user ratings are close enough to be indistinguishable. Choose on capability and platform support.
Which is cheaper, IDnow or Semperis?
IDnow starts at On request and Semperis at On request.
Does IDnow or Semperis run on more platforms?
IDnow runs on Web, iOS, Android, API. Semperis runs on Web.
What is IDnow best used for?
IDnow is most often used for a german bank opening regulated accounts where bafin requires a recognised identification method, an insurer needing a qualified electronic signature that will survive challenge in a european court, a telecom operator meeting national sim registration identity rules across several eu states, a lender wanting automated checks for low-risk applicants and video identification only for high-value cases. Of those, a german bank opening regulated accounts where bafin requires a recognised identification method and an insurer needing a qualified electronic signature that will survive challenge in a european court are not what Semperis is typically brought in for.
What can IDnow do that Semperis cannot?
IDnow covers VideoIdent, AutoIdent, eSign, eID and NFC. Semperis covers Active Directory Forest Recovery, Malware-free restore, Replication-stream monitoring, Automated rollback.

Answered from the vendors’ own pages

IDnow: Why choose it over a cheaper automated vendor?

Because in some European regimes the cheaper vendor is not legally permitted for the transaction. This is an eligibility question, not a quality one.

Semperis: Does this replace my backups?

No. It replaces the Active Directory recovery procedure specifically. You still need backups for everything else, and the point of Semperis is that a generic system-state backup of a domain controller is a poor way to recover a forest because it restores the operating system along with whatever compromised it.

IDnow: Is the electronic signature included?

No. Qualified electronic signature under eIDAS is licensed separately from identity verification.

Semperis: Is it useful if we are cloud-only on Entra ID?

Partly. Directory Services Protector covers Entra ID and Okta for change tracking and posture, but the forest recovery product, which is the strongest reason to buy, applies to on-premises Active Directory. A genuinely cloud-only organisation should weigh it against Microsoft's own tooling.

IDnow: Where is the data processed?

In European data centres, which is a requirement rather than a preference for many of its regulated customers.

Semperis: Are Purple Knight and Forest Druid really free?

Yes, both are free downloads with no licence requirement, and they are widely used by organisations that are not Semperis customers. They are also, transparently, the top of the sales funnel.

Semperis: How long does forest recovery actually take?

The honest answer is whatever your rehearsal took. The vendor's case is hours instead of days, and automation genuinely removes most manual steps, but the number that matters for your board is the one from a test in your own environment.

Semperis: Does it require agents on domain controllers?

It collects directory changes from the AD replication stream, which is what lets it see changes that bypass the security log. Deployment details vary by product and version, so confirm the exact architecture against your domain controller change-control rules.

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