One of the pandemic "winners" – a member of a large group of companies that appeared and grew exponentially to serve the needs of the government in its chosen way of handling the situation, as most of the economy was standing still – now appears to be in trouble.

ID.me's business is digital identity verification, and it says that its job is to simplify how individuals securely prove and share their identity online.

It can be used by governments, who want to allow citizens access to services. In the US, the company was contracted by the Internal Revenue Service (IRS) earlier this year to implement an authentication project that has since, according to reports, faced problems.

ID.me also secured dozens of other contracts, including with Social Security Administration, Department of Veterans Affairs, and many state unemployment agencies.