About Verutap
Verutap turns every physical checkpoint into a verified digital record. Workers tap an NFC tag or scan a QR code at a checkpoint, and the system records who was there, when, and where — with GPS confirmation and offline resilience.
How a scan becomes a record
Every tap or scan is signed, timestamped, and paired with the guard's GPS position. If the phone is offline, the scan is queued locally in encrypted storage and synced as soon as connectivity returns — no scans are lost in dead zones. Supervisors see activity in real time in the admin dashboard; clients receive automated, printable PDF reports.
What you need to run Verutap
- A phone per worker — Android or iOS. Most deployments issue Android devices via an MDM (we use WeGuard) because they handle NFC more flexibly. iOS is supported for supervisors, administrators, and workers whose tag choices are iPhone-compatible.
- NFC tags at each checkpoint — stickers, keyfobs, or printed QR codes. Tag type matters (see the next section).
- A Verutap account — one per organization. Contact us to provision.
NFC tag compatibility
NFC is an umbrella standard with several incompatible sub-protocols. Different phone platforms support different subsets. Choosing the right tag is the single most important decision when setting up a site — the wrong chip means iOS phones can't scan at all.
| Tag type | Android | iPhone | Typical cost |
|---|---|---|---|
| NTAG213 / NTAG215 / NTAG216 (recommended) | Yes | Yes | $0.05 – $0.15 |
| MIFARE Ultralight / Ultralight C / Ultralight EV1 | Yes | Yes | $0.10 – $0.30 |
| MIFARE DESFire EV1 / EV2 / EV3 | Yes | Yes (UID only) | $1 – $4 |
| MIFARE Plus | Yes | Yes (UID only) | $1 – $3 |
| MIFARE Classic 1K / 4K | Yes | No — Apple blocks | $0.30 – $0.80 |
| ISO-15693 / Vicinity (HID iCLASS, TI Tag-it) | Yes | Yes | $0.50 – $2 |
| FeliCa (Japanese Suica, Octopus) | Yes | Config only | — |
| 125 kHz RFID (HID Prox, EM4100, ProxCard II) | No | No | — |
If you are deploying a new site, use NTAG213 stickers. They are the cheapest option, work flawlessly on every modern phone (Android and iOS alike), and carry more than enough storage for a checkpoint identifier. Buy in bulk from Amazon or any electronics distributor.
Why iPhones can't read MIFARE Classic
MIFARE Classic was the dominant access-card chip in the 2000s — it powers many legacy building-access badges, transit cards, and hotel keys. Its encryption (NXP's Crypto1) was cryptographically broken in 2008 and has been deprecated industry-wide.
Apple has never allowed iPhones to read MIFARE Classic tags, for security reasons. Core NFC — iOS's NFC framework — recognizes MIFARE Classic at the physical layer but blocks it from reaching apps. No third-party iOS app, including Verutap, can work around this.
Existing checkpoints with MIFARE Classic tags continue working on Android, but iPhone guards will see the "Ready to Scan" prompt without the tag ever being detected. The fix is to replace the tags with NTAG213 (or any MIFARE Ultralight / DESFire variant). NTAG213 stickers cost about $0.10 each; re-provisioning a typical site of 80–100 checkpoints takes an afternoon.
QR codes as a universal fallback
Every Verutap checkpoint can be registered with both an NFC tag and a QR code. QR scanning works on every smartphone camera and is immune to the tag-type issue above. For mixed deployments — where some guards carry iPhones and some checkpoints have legacy MIFARE Classic — we recommend attaching a small printed QR sticker alongside the NFC tag. iPhones fall back to QR while the tag is upgraded; Androids continue tapping.
iPhone vs Android: ergonomic differences
Even when tag compatibility matches, the scanning experience differs:
- Android — NFC is always listening while the app is open. A guard walks up to a checkpoint, touches the phone to the tag, scan happens in ~300ms, continue to the next checkpoint. This is the preferred workflow for high-volume patrols.
- iPhone — iOS requires a user-initiated session for each scan. The guard taps the "Scan" button, Apple's system sheet says "Ready to Scan," guard taps phone to tag, sheet closes. It's ~2 seconds slower per scan and requires a deliberate tap of the Scan button each time.
For a route of 20 checkpoints in a single patrol, this adds roughly 40 seconds of overhead on iPhone compared to Android. For most security patrol deployments, Android is the better fit for field guards; iPhone remains excellent for supervisors, managers, and clients reviewing reports.
Data & privacy
- Scans are stored on your organization's Verutap backend, never sold or shared with third parties.
- NFC tag UIDs are physical hardware serials and are treated as pseudonymous; we redact them in diagnostic logs.
- All traffic between the phone and the backend is encrypted with TLS.
- Guard PINs are stored as peppered bcrypt hashes. Passwords are salted + hashed.
- Data is backed up nightly. A full disaster-recovery restore is tested monthly.
Contact
Email [email protected] to request a demo, provision an account, or ask a technical question. We respond within one business day.