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Drew Harwell

Reporter

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Reporter
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The profile

In February 2022 Harwell reported for The Washington Post that ID.me, the identity contractor 30 states paid to check people seeking unemployment insurance, had verified fake driver's licenses in what prosecutors called a $2.5 million unemployment-fraud scheme.

Identity and role

Drew Harwell is a technology reporter for The Washington Post, which he joined in 2014. His Post staff page says his work was honored by the Gerald Loeb Awards in 2024 and the George Polk Awards in 2021.

Pandemic-relief / PPP-EIDL role

On February 7, 2022 he reported that the IRS had abandoned its plan to require millions of Americans to pass a facial recognition check through a private company to reach their online tax accounts. Two days later he reported that the contractor, ID.me, would drop the facial recognition requirement in software used by 30 states and 10 federal agencies.

On February 11, 2022 he reported that ID.me had verified fake driver's licenses in a California case. Federal prosecutors alleged that a New Jersey man filed at least 78 fraudulent claims worth $2.5 million for pandemic unemployment assistance and other benefits. The Post reported that more than $900,000 of state and federal money had been lost by the time of his indictment. The claims went to California's Employment Development Department, which had used ID.me since October 2020 and, investigators wrote, approved them "based in part on the ID verification from ID.me." ID.me pointed to the case as an example of how well its systems work, the Post reported, noting that it had referred the case to federal law enforcement after an internal investigation.

We found no Harwell byline on PPP lending. Tony Romm wrote the Post's December 1, 2022 story on the House Select Subcommittee's fintech report, including its findings on Blueacorn. Harwell's April 30, 2020 story covered employers using surveillance software and always-on webcams to watch staff working from home.

Where they are now (2025–2026)

The Post's staff page lists him as a technology reporter in Washington, D.C., with bylines through May 2026. A March 6, 2024 Post announcement said he had covered the AI industry "for over six years" and had spoken to Poynter about AI's role in society and the newsroom.

Renae Merle covered the April 2020 PPP rollout at the Post.

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