In an era of increasing identity theft, traditional methods of identity verification are no longer enough. Big data systems can tap into massive real-time databases and leverage next-gen analytics with machine learning to cross-check details from a ton of sources in seconds. This can help companies thwart identity fraud, reduce risk and costs, and provide customers with an air-tight, yet smooth verification experience. Identity fraud has reached epidemic proportions, with an estimated new victim of identity theft every 22 seconds and total losses estimated at over $10 billion. Big data could be the ID validation game changer we need today.