NotaryCentral lets you require Knowledge-Based Authentication (KBA) by default for Remote Online Notarization (RON) participants, even when your commissioning state does not require it. You can still turn KBA on or off for an individual participant when state law allows.
Signing Defaults
Choose an account default
Turn on one setting to preselect KBA for participants in your RON appointments.
Appointment Setup
Override each participant
Use the Require KBA checkbox in a participant's details to make a different choice for that signer.
Compliance
State requirements still apply
If your state requires KBA, the participant setting stays enabled and cannot be turned off.
Enable KBA as your default
- Sign in to NotaryCentral.
- Open the main Menu.
- In the menu search field, type KBA or signing defaults.
- Select Sometimes require KBA for RON participants from the matching result. Searching signing defaults may show the parent category and its matching child entries automatically; choose the KBA child entry.
- Stay on the General tab.
- Turn on Sometimes require KBA for RON participants.
- Select Save.
You can also open the setting directly at Signing Defaults.
After you save, NotaryCentral uses KBA as the default for RON participants who do not already have a participant-specific choice. This setting does not add KBA to in-person appointments. When it is off, the participant-level KBA control is hidden in states where KBA is optional.
If your commissioning state strictly requires KBA, the account-level switch is disabled because the state requirement already applies. The switch also stays disabled if NotaryCentral cannot verify the compliance status.
Override KBA for one participant
You can make a different KBA choice for each participant while creating or editing a RON appointment:
- Open a RON appointment or create a new one.
- Go to the Participants section.
- Find the participant whose setting you want to change.
- Use the Require KBA checkbox:
- Clear it to skip KBA for this participant when KBA is optional in your state.
- Select it to require KBA for this participant even when your account default is off.
- Save the appointment.
The participant choice takes precedence over your account default. This makes it possible, for example, to require KBA for most customers while turning it off for a personally known signer when your state's rules permit that identification method.
What happens when your state requires KBA
State requirements always take precedence over both the account default and participant overrides.
When KBA is required by your commissioning state:
- The participant-level KBA toggle is not shown because KBA is automatically required.
- KBA remains enforced by the signing workflow and cannot be turned off for that participant.
Changing the account default never weakens a state-mandated KBA requirement. Notaries remain responsible for confirming that the selected identity-proofing method complies with their commissioning state's rules and the circumstances of the notarial act.
How the account default and participant setting work together
| Account default | Participant choice | Effective result |
|---|---|---|
| On | No participant-specific choice | KBA is required. |
| On | Require KBA cleared | KBA is not required, unless the state mandates it. |
| Off | No participant-specific choice | KBA is not required, unless the state mandates it. |
| Off | Require KBA selected | KBA is required for that participant. |
| Either | State requires KBA | KBA is always required. |
KBA and identity verification are separate choices
KBA asks a signer personal-history questions based on available records. Credential analysis verifies a government-issued ID and may include a biometric selfie comparison. These are separate steps, and requiring KBA does not replace the other identity-verification requirements that apply to the signing.
KBA may be difficult or unavailable for signers without sufficient US credit or public-record history. Before enabling it for an international signer, review Credential Analysis for Signers Outside the US.
For quiz limits and lockout behavior, see Rules for Retries: KBA and ID Verification + Biometrics. KBA also has a separate platform charge; see NotaryCentral pricing for current details.
Frequently asked questions
- Does enabling the default change every existing participant?
The default applies when a RON participant does not have a participant-specific KBA choice. An explicit participant setting continues to take precedence unless state law requires KBA.
- Can I turn KBA off for one signer if my default is on?
Yes, when KBA is optional in your commissioning state. Open that participant's details and clear Require KBA. If the state requires KBA, the participant-level option is hidden and KBA remains enforced automatically.
- Can I require KBA for one signer if my default is off?
Yes. Select Require KBA for that participant before saving the RON appointment.
- Does this setting affect in-person appointments?
No. The default KBA setting applies to Remote Online Notarization participants.
Related guides
- Configuring Signing Defaults
- Rules for Retries: KBA and ID Verification + Biometrics
- Credential Analysis for Signers Outside the US