Zerify, Inc. - Annual Report: 2022 (Form 10-K)

UNITED STATES

SECURITIES EXCHANGE COMMISSION

Washington, D.C. 20549

FORM 10-K

For the fiscal year ended December 31, 2022

For the transition period from _________ to _________

1090 King Georges Post Road, Suite 603

Edison, NJ 08837

(Address of Principal Executive Offices)

(732) 661-9641

(Issuer’s telephone number)

Securities registered pursuant to Section 12(b) of the Exchange Act:

 Securities registered pursuant to Section 12(g) of the Exchange Act:

Common stock, $0.0001 par value

Title of Class

Indicate by check mark if the registrant is a well-known seasoned issuer, as defined in Rule 405 of the Securities Act. ☐      Yes No ☒

Indicate by check mark if the registrant is not required to file reports pursuant to Section 13 or Section 15(d) of the Act. ☐     Yes No ☒

Check whether the issuer (1) filed all reports required to be filed by Section 13 or 15(d) of the Exchange Act during the past 12 months (or for such shorter period that the registrant was required to file such reports), and (2) has been subject to such filing requirements for the past 90 days. Yes ☒     No☐

Indicate by check mark whether the registrant has submitted electronically, every Interactive Data File required to be submitted and posted pursuant to Rule 405 of Regulation S-T (§232.405 of this chapter) during the preceding 12 months (or for such a shorter period that the registrant was required to submit and post such files). Yes ☒     No ☐

Indicate by check mark whether the registrant is a large accelerated filer, an accelerated filer, a non-accelerated filer, smaller reporting company, or an emerging growth company. See the definitions of “large accelerated filer,” “accelerated filer,” “smaller reporting company,” and “emerging growth company” in Rule 12b–2 of the Exchange Act.

If an emerging growth company, indicate by check mark if the registrant has elected not to use the extended transition period for complying with any new or revised financial accounting standards provided pursuant to Section 7(a)(2)(B) of the Securities Act. ☐

Indicate by check mark whether the registrant is a shell company (as defined in Rule 12b-2 of the Act. Yes ☐     No ☒

Indicate the number of shares outstanding of each of the issuer’s classes of common stock, as of the latest practicable date.

State the aggregate market value of the voting and non-voting common equity held by non-affiliates computed by reference to the price at which the common equity was last sold, or the average bid and asked price of such common equity, as of the last business day of the registrant’s most recently completed second fiscal quarter. Solely for purposes of the foregoing calculation, all of the registrant’s directors and officers are deemed to be affiliates. This determination of affiliate status for this purpose does not reflect a determination that any persons are affiliates for any other purposes. $21,120,000 

Transitional Small Business Disclosure Format Yes ☐     No ☒

Documents Incorporated By Reference

None

ZERIFY, INC.

FORM 10-K ANNUAL REPORT

FOR THE FISCAL YEARS ENDED DECEMBER 31, 2022 AND 2021

TABLE OF CONTENTS

CERTIFICATIONS

CAUTION REGARDING FORWARD-LOOKING INFORMATION

Included in this annual report are “forward-looking” statements, within the meaning of the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995 (“PSLRA”) as well as historical information. Some of our statements under “Business”, “Properties”, “Legal Proceedings”, “Management’s Discussion and Analysis of Financial Condition and Results of Operations”,” the Notes to Consolidated Financial Statements” and elsewhere in this report constitute “forward-looking statements” within the meaning of Section 27A of the Securities Act of 1933 and Section 21E of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934. Although we believe that the expectations reflected in these forward-looking statements are reasonable and achievable, we cannot assure you that the expectations reflected therein  will prove to be correct.  Additionally, because these statements involved risks and uncertainties,  . we cannot assure you that actual results will be consistent with these forward-looking statements Our actual results could differ materially from those anticipated in forward-looking statements as a result of certain factors, including matters described in the section titled “Risk Factors.” Forward-looking statements include those that use forward-looking terminology, such as the words “anticipate,” “believe,” “estimate,” “expect,” “intend,” “may,” “project,” “plan,” “will,” “shall,” “should,” and similar expressions, including when expressed  negatively. . We claim the protection afforded by the safe harbor for forward-looking statements provided by the PSLRA.

Such risks include, among others, the following: international, national and local general economic and market conditions: our ability to sustain, manage or forecast our growth; material costs and availability; new product development and introduction; existing government regulations and changes in, or the failure to comply with, government regulations; adverse publicity; competition; the loss of significant customers or suppliers; fluctuations and difficulty in forecasting operating results; changes in business strategy or development plans; business disruptions; the current inflation rate and supply chain disruptions; the implications and consequences of the COVID-19 pandemic on our business and on our clients’ business and on the effectiveness and distributions of vaccines and boosters, domestically and internationally, to limit the impact of COVID-19, changes to mask mandate policies and to transitioning from a pandemic to an endemic; the ability to attract and retain qualified personnel; the ability to protect technology; and other factors referenced in this and prior filings.

Consequently, all the forward-looking statements made in this Form 10-K are qualified by these cautionary statements and there can be no assurance that the actual results anticipated by management will be realized or, even if substantially realized, that they will have the expected consequences to or effects on our business operations. We undertake no obligation to update or revise these forward-looking statements, whether to reflect events or circumstances after the date initially filed or published, to reflect the occurrence of unanticipated events or otherwise.

Unless otherwise noted, references in this Form 10-K to “StrikeForce”, “Zerify”, “we”, “us”, “our”, “SFT”, “our company”, and the “Company” means Zerify, Inc (formally known as  StrikeForce Technologies, Inc.), a Wyoming corporation. 

PART I

ITEM 1. BUSINESS

Executive Offices/Website

Our executive office is located at 1090 King Georges Post Road, Suite 603, Edison, NJ 08837. Our telephone number is (732) 661-9641. Our website is at www.zerify.com (formerly www.strikeforcetech.com) (we are not including the information contained in our website as part of, nor should the information be relied upon or incorporated by reference into this report on Form 10-K).

History

We are a software development and services company that offers a suite of integrated computer network security products using proprietary technology. StrikeForce Technical Services Corporation was incorporated in August 2001 in New Jersey. On September 3, 2004, we changed our name to StrikeForce Technologies, Inc. On November 15, 2010, we redomiciled to Wyoming. We initially conducted operations as an integrator and reseller of computer hardware and telecommunications equipment and services until December 2002.  In December 2002, and formally memorialized in September 2003, we acquired certain intellectual property rights and patent pending technology from NetLabs.com, Inc. (“Net Labs”), including the rights to further develop and sell Net-Labs’ principal technology. At such time, certain officers of NetLabs joined us as our officers and directors. 

Our ongoing strategy is developing and marketing our suite of network security products to the corporate, financial, healthcare, legal, government, technology, insurance, e-commerce and consumer sectors. Our goal is to grow our business through our globally expanding sales channel and internally generated sales, rather than by acquisitions. On June 14, 2022, our Board of Directors and the majority of our  outstanding votes  approved by  consent  to change our name from StrikeForce Technologies, Inc. to Zerify, Inc. We hold a 49% interest in BlockSafe Technologies, Inc., and, as of April 2021, we hold a 100% interest in Cybersecurity Risk Solutions, LLC. We conduct our operations from our corporate office in Edison, New Jersey.

We began our operations in 2001 as a reseller and integrator of computer hardware and iris biometric technology. Iris biometric technology is using your looking into your cell phone as a way to authenticate it is really you. From our inception through the first half of 2003, we derived the majority of our revenues as an integrator. In December 2002, upon the acquisition of the licensing rights to certain intellectual property and patent pending technology from NetLabs, we shifted our focus to developing and marketing our own suite of security products. Based upon our acquired licensing rights and additional research and development, we have developed various identification protection software products to protect computer networks from unauthorized access and to protect users from identity theft.

We completed the development of our ProtectID® platform at the end of June 2006, we completed the core development of our keyboard encryption and anti-keylogger product, GuardedID®, in December 2006, and we commenced deployment of our new mobile product, MobileTrust® into the mobile stores in 2015. We finished development of our SafeVchat™ Secure Video Conferencing and PrivacyLoK™ products at the end of 2020 and deployed SafeVchat™ beta testing by some by our clients and individuals through our resellers. SafeVchat™, in management’s estimation, is one of the most secure video conferencing products on the market. PrivacyLoK™ adds security to all video conferencing tools and runs in conjunction with other applications on the same computer. Our goal is to expand our revenue base via increased revenues from SafeVchat™ and PrivacyLoK™ in 2023, and beyond. All of the foregoing products are currently being sold and distributed.

The keystroke encryption technology we developed and use in our GuardedID® product is protected by three patents through the US Patent and Trademark Office. MobileTrust® has a patent throughout Europe, by the European Patent Office, as of June 2020 (See Intellectual Property Section beginning on page 11).

Our Product Targets, Pricing and Revenues

Our suite of products is targeted to the financial, e-commerce, corporate, government, healthcare, legal, insurance, technology and retail markets. We seek to locate customers in a variety of ways, including contracts with value added resellers and distributors (both inside the United States and internationally), direct sales calls initiated by our internal staff, exhibitions at security and technology trade shows, through the media, through consulting agreements, and through our agent relationships.  We generate sales revenue either as an Original Equipment Manufacturer (“OEM”) model, through a Hosting/License agreement, bundled with our other products or through direct purchase by distributors and resellers. We price our products for cloud consumer transactions based on the number of transactions in which our software products are utilized. We also price our products for business applications based on the number of users. These pricing models provide us with one-time, monthly, quarterly and annual recurring revenues with volume discounts.

We generated all of our revenues of $103,000 for the year ended December 31, 2022 (compared to $193,000 for the year ended December 31, 2021), from the sales of our security products. The decrease in revenues was primarily due to a reduction in the sales of our products caused by the adverse economic conditions resulting from the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic.

Marketing/Market Demand

We market our products globally to financial service firms, healthcare related companies, legal services companies, e-commerce companies, automotive, government agencies, multi-level marketing groups, the enterprise market in general, and with virtual private network companies, as well as technology service companies and retail distributors that service all the above markets. We seek such sales through our own direct efforts, with emphasis on retail, through distributors, resellers and third-party agents internationally. We are also seeking to license the technology as original equipment with computer hardware and software manufacturers. We are engaged in multiple production installations and pilot projects with various distributors, resellers and direct customers primarily in the United States. Our GuardedID® product is also being sold directly to consumers, primarily through the Internet as well as distributors, resellers, third party agents, affiliates and potential OEM agreements by bundling GuardedID® with their products (providing a value-add and competitive advantage to their own products and offerings). Currently this is the most active market for us with multiple programs in production. We anticipate, but cannot guarantee, increases in revenues in fiscal 2023 (subject to the impairments to the economy caused by the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic and the degree to which the economy rebounds post-pandemic, and any domestic economic impact from the war in Ukraine), from these programs.

We have incurred substantial losses since our inception. Our products provide a cost-effective and technologically competitive solution to address the problems of network security and identity theft in general. Guidance for the Federal Financial Institutions Examination Council (“FFIEC”) regulations include the requirement for solutions that have Two-Factor Out-of-Band Authentication and products that stop keylogging malware, real time, which our management believes our proprietary products uniquely and directly address. This guidance went into effect as of January 1, 2012. Based on this requirement in the FFIEC update (published in June 2011 with enforcement commencing in January 2012), we have experienced a growing increase in sales orders and inquiries every year. However, there can be no assurance that our products will continue to gain acceptance and continue to grow in the commercial marketplace or that one of our competitors will not introduce technically superior products.

Because we are now experiencing a continual growing market demand (with growth temporarily curtailed by the economic consequences of the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic), we are developing a reseller and distribution channel as a strategy to generate, manage and fulfill demand for our products across market segments, minimizing the requirement for an increase in our staff as we grow our distributor market. We have minimized the concentration on our initial direct sales efforts as our distribution and reseller channels continue to grow internationally and will require appropriate levels of support.

Covid-19

In March 2020, the World Health Organization declared the spread of COVID-19 a pandemic. This outbreak continues to spread throughout the U.S. and around the world. As a result, authorities continue to implement numerous measures to try to contain the virus, including restrictions on travel, quarantines, shelter-in-place orders, business restrictions and complete shutdowns. We are not considered an “essential business” due to the industries and customers we serve. As of, and subsequent to, December 31, 2022, we have been following the recommendations of the CDC and state/local health authorities to minimize exposure risk for our team members during the pandemic, including the temporary closure of our corporate office and having our team members work remotely. During the second quarter of 2021, we reopened our corporate office while continuing to adhere to the guidelines issued by health authorities. Many customers and vendors have transitioned to electronic submission of invoices and payments. The COVID-19 pandemic has resulted in longer response times from potential new customers and certain existing customers. We cannot anticipate the effect that the impairments caused by the COVID-19 pandemic will have on our year end fiscal 2023 results, or the effectiveness and distributions of vaccines, boosters, and their distribution in 2023 and changes to mask mandate policies or the shift from a pandemic to an endemic. The pandemic has significantly impacted the economic conditions both in the United States and worldwide, with accelerated effects through the date of this Annual Report, as federal, state and local governments react to the public health crisis, creating significant uncertainties in both the worldwide and the United States economies. The situation is rapidly changing, including the onset of the ongoing most recent and anticipated wave of the virus caused by the B2 Omicron variant and the possibility of other variants over time, and additional impacts to our business may arise that we are not aware of currently. We cannot predict whether, when or the manner in which, the conditions surrounding COVID-19 will change including the timing of lifting any restrictions or office closure requirements. We will continue to evaluate the nature and extent of COVID-19’s impact to our business, consolidated results of operations, financial condition and liquidity, and our results presented herein are not necessarily indicative of the results to be expected for future periods in 2023, or beyond.

Management believes that cyber security is a growing requirement as the pandemic continues and more people are working remotely as well as using digital forms on a regular basis. Consequently, the market demand, in our estimation, is increasing. However, we are also experiencing the impact of the pandemic. Currently our management has limited operating from our office location, which impedes our ability to take full advantage of the increasing market demand. Many of our current clients have experienced a dramatic slowdown in their business, limiting their ability to have the resources to pay for our services. We continue to generate  revenues and we anticipate, but cannot guarantee, our video conferencing tool, SafeVchat™, which provides authentication and security (using our existing products), will have gained acceptance in the market. Currently, we have companies doing beta testing. During the year ended December 31, 2022, we earned revenues of $10,000 from SafeVchat™ and PrivacyLoK™ and overall revenues of $103,000. We believe, but cannot assure, that our sales, partly as a consequence of the new work environment created by the ongoing pandemic and the need for our products, will significantly increase in fiscal 2023 and continue that substantial growth in 2024. We also are encouraged by the $65 billion dollars provided for broadband access to improve internet services that is in the recently enacted federal Infrastructure Bill of 2021, but cannot provide assurance as to how, or if, that will impact our products and services.

Regulation A Offerings

On May 11, 2021, our filing of an Offering Circular on Form 1-A, pursuant to Regulation A (File Number: 024-11512) was qualified by the Securities and Exchange Commission. We registered 150,000,000 shares of common stock for maximum proceeds of $7,065,000 (after deducting the maximum broker discount and costs of the offering). During the year ended December 31, 2021, we issued 119,666,450 shares of common stock to investors for cash proceeds of $5,602,158, net of fees and commission, pursuant to the May 2021 Offering Circular. In September 2021, we sold 50,000,000 warrant shares for $50,000 to two investors who purchased subscriptions through the Offering Circular. We also awarded 5,000,000 warrant shares to the broker who facilitated the Offering Circular. The warrants vest immediately and have a 5-year term with an exercise price of $0.05 per share.

On December 21, 2022, the Securities and Exchange Commission qualified our Regulation A Offering Circular on Form 1-A (File Number: 024-12026). We registered 222,222,222 Units consisting of five (5) shares of Common Stock and one (1)  common stock purchase warrants exercisable at $0.02 per share, at a price of $.0225 per Unit, for maximum proceeds of $5,000,000 (after deducting the maximum broker discount and costs of the offering). During the year ended December 31, 2022, we issued 40,100,000 common stock shares  in the Regulation A Offering in exchange for cash of $180,000, net of direct fees and commissions. As part of the Regulation A offering, we also issued warrants to certain investors and its placement agent to purchase 8,020,000 shares of common stock, which warrants vest immediately and have a 5-year term with an exercise price of $0.02 per share.

Our Products

Zerify is a software development and services company. We own and are seeking to commercially market various identification protection software products that we developed to protect computer networks from unauthorized access, real time, and to protect network owners and users from cyber security attacks and data breaches. Our principal products ProtectID®, GuardedID®, MobileTrust® inclusive of our unique Zerify Meet (our Secure Video Conferencing Product) and Zerify Defender™ (our end-point security product)  are proprietary authentication and patented keystroke encryption technologies that are intended to eliminate unauthorized access to computer networks, securing video conferencing and all mobile devices, and to prevent unauthorized individuals from copying (logging) keystrokes and utilizing any video conference product. We are increasing our market for our suite of products in the financial services, e-commerce, corporate, healthcare, government and consumer sectors. Our cyber security products are as follows:

Our products sometimes include software and hardware that we contractually license from other vendors. These products include additional authentication and telecommunication software devices.

The ProtectID® Cloud Service can be hosted by our service provider (we have a strategic arrangement with a third party SAS70 hosting service) as well as the ProtectID® Out-of-Band and Multi-Factor Platform, which can be installed internally in a customer’s infrastructure or as a hybrid implementation. With the exception of our free redistributable Microsoft software components. ProtectID® is also part of our Zerify Meet™ product.

Factors that we consider important to our success include the following:

Business Model

We are focusing primarily on developing sales through “channel” relationships by offering  our products through   other manufacturers, distributors, value-added resellers and agents, internationally. In 2016, we added and publicly announced additions to our global distribution sales channel, which provides additional presence for us in the United States, Canada, Europe and Africa. We continue to add additional channel partners, especially on the consumer side and developed a new retail business. We also sell our suite of security products directly from our Edison, New Jersey office, which also augments our channel partner relationships. It is our strategy that these “channel” relationships will provide the greater percentage of our revenues ongoing, as was the case in the past two years. Examples of the channel relationships that we are seeking include already established original equipment manufacturer (“OEM”) and bundled relationships with other security technology and software providers that would integrate or bundle the enhanced security capabilities of ProtectID®, GuardedID® into their own product lines, including Zerify Meet™ and Zerify Defender™ and our Zerify Meet™ API’s, thereby providing greater value to their clients. These would include providers of networking software and manufacturers of computer and telecommunications hardware and software that provide managed services, and multi-level marketing groups, as well as all markets interested in increasing the value of their products and packages, such as financial services software, anti-virus, government integrators and identity theft product companies. We contracted with various new distributors during 2020 and 2021, and we anticipate, but cannot guarantee an increase in revenues in 2023 (subject to the impairments caused by the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic and the degree to which the economy rebounds post-pandemic). However, in 2023 we anticipate some large increases based on current discussions starting.

We believe, but cannot guarantee, increased  revenues of Zerify Meet™, our secure Video Conferencing Tool, and Zerify Defender™, which adds five levels of security for Zerify Meet™. While the full effect of the increased use in remote access in employment due to COVID-19 is still undeterminable, it has become evident, in managements estimation, clear that people will be working remotely for a long time, perhaps with some hybrid level of permanence. In a February 2021 New York Times article, Google announced that they will no longer require that their employees to come into the attainment office, as stated in the New York Times, Video conference sales are projected to be over $100 billion, more than double of what was originally projected. We believe that SafeVchat™ and Zerify Defender™ are perfectly timed for introduction into the market and we anticipate, but cannot guarantee, our market share will grow over the next several years.

From our MobileTrust® security application, built with our sCloud registration process, we created and announced two additional products in 2020: our ProtectID® Mobile OTP (One Time Password) to be used with ProtectID® and our GuardedID® Mobile keystroke encryption software development kit (SDK). Both products are now in production. With the creation of GuardedID® Mobile SDK, we now focus the sales of this software product to the development groups of our target markets for it to be added to their mobile applications. We are in discussions with many large-scale parties that are interested in this software, although no assurances can be provided as to acceptance and profitability. Management has already received requests for this software, as keystroke encryption malware grows and remains a major problem for the mobile-cyber security market, particularly with anti-virus products being viewed as non-effective against malware threats.

Our primary target markets include secure financial services such as banks and insurance companies, healthcare providers, legal services, government agencies through integrators, technology platforms, e-commerce-based services companies, telecommunications and cellular carriers, technology software companies, government agencies and consumers, especially for our mobile and keystroke encryption products and our secure video conferencing and end-point solutions We are focusing our concentration on cyber security and data breach strategic problem areas, such as where compliance with financial, healthcare, legal and government regulations are key and stolen passwords are used to acquire private information illegally. In 2020 and 2021, several of our channel partners had pilots and client implementations in place that are expected, although no assurances can be provided, to increase our revenues in 2023 (subject to the impairments caused by the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic and the degree to which the economy rebounds post-pandemic). There is no guarantee as to the timing and continued success of these efforts.

Because we are now expecting a continual, recurring growing market demand, especially in the mobility and encryption retail markets, we continue to develop a reseller and distribution channel as a strategy to generate, manage and fulfill demand for our products across market segments, minimizing the requirement for an increase in our staff as we grow our distributor market. We continue to minimize the concentration on our initial direct sales efforts as our distribution and reseller channels continue to grow internationally and provide appropriate levels of sales and support to the growing Cyber Security market, especially with the new help with VationVentures.

We seek to generate revenues through recurring fees for Zerify Meet™ (inclusive of Zerify Defender™ and ProtectID®), Zerify Defender™, GuardedID® and ProtectID® based on client consumer usage in the financial, healthcare services and legal services markets, as well as enterprises in general. We provide our clients a choice of operating our ProtectID® software internally by licensing it or through our hosted Cloud Service or a hybrid that some clients have implemented and none of our competitors presently offer. GuardedID® requires a download on each and every computer it protects, whether for employees or consumers. We have four GuardedID® products, (i) a standard version which protects browser data entry only, (ii) a premium version which protects almost all the applications running under Microsoft Windows on the desktop, including Microsoft Office Suite and almost all applications running on the desktop, (iii) an Enterprise version which, in addition, provides the Enterprise administrative rights and the use of Microsoft’s Enterprise tools for the product’s deployment, and (iv) an Apple version for all the latest MAC operating systems and for the browsers and entire desktop. Our GuardedID® Mobile SDK (software development kit) is priced for the consumer through the appropriate mobile phone stores, as well as direct, distribution and OEM sales for higher volume enterprises, including volume discounts to the degree allowed by the telecommunications providers. We anticipate, but cannot guarantee, steadily increasing revenues from these product offerings.

Our management believes that our products provide a cost-effective and technologically competitive solution to address the increasing problems of network security and cyber security in general.

Marketing

Our multi-channel marketing strategy includes:

1. The addition of resellers, agents & distributors (our strategic sales channel) who distribute and resell our products and services to enterprise and commercial customers globally (technology and software product distributors, systems integrators, managed service companies, other security technology and software vendors, telecom companies, cyber security related product companies, etc.).

2. Application Service Provider (ASP) Partners: Our third-party service provides a hosting platform that facilitates faster implementations at competitive prices for our Cloud Service option

3. Original Equipment Manufacturers (OEM): SFT products are sold to other security technology vendors that integrate ProtectID®, GuardedID® and, now, GuardedID® Mobile SDK into their products (bundling) and services providing for monthly/annual increasing recurring revenues. They are also now able to sell and bundle Zerify Meet™ and Zerify Defender™.

4. Technology and other providers and resellers, agents and distributors are interested in purchasing and or selling our new SafeVchat™ and PrivacyLok™ products as secure video conferencing products

5. Outside Independent consultants selling our products for commission only, focusing on the video conferencing, healthcare, legal, travel and consumer markets

Intellectual Property

In November 2010, we received notice that the United States Patent and Trademark Office (“USPTO”) had issued an official Notice of Allowance for the patent application for the technology relating to our ProtectID® product, titled “Multi-Channel Device Utilizing a Centralized Out-of-Band Authentication System”. In January 2011, we received notice that the USPTO issued to us Patent No. 7,870,599. This “Out-of-Band” Patent went through a USPTO Re-Examination process starting on August 16, 2011 and concluded on December 27, 2011, with all of our patent claims remaining intact and eight additional patent claims being added. Since 2011, we submitted additional continuation patents on the “Out-of-Band” Patent. The keystroke encryption technology we developed and use in our GuardedID® product is protected by three patents and one continuation pending.

In January 2013, we were assigned the entire right, title and interest in the “Out-of-Band” Patent from NetLabs, with the agreement of the developer, and the assignment was recorded with the USPTO.

In February 2013, we executed a retainer agreement with our patent attorneys to aggressively enforce our patent rights as “Out-of-Band Authentication” was becoming the standard for authenticating consumers in the financial market and for many SaaS application users (e.g., SalesForce, Quickbooks, etc.). In February 2013, our patent attorneys submitted a new “Out-of-Band” Patent continuation, which was granted.

In March 2013, our patent attorneys submitted a new “Methods and Apparatus for securing user input in a mobile device” Patent, which is now patent pending. Our MobileTrust® product is the invention supporting the patent pending.

In July 2013, we received notice that the USPTO had added 54 additional patent claims for our Out-of-Band patent we received in January 2011, by issuing to us Patent No. 8,484,698 thereby strengthening our position with clients and our current and potential lawsuits.

In October 2013, we received notice that the USPTO issued to us Patent No. 8,566,608 “Methods and apparatus for securing keystrokes from being intercepted between the keyboard and a browser.” This protects our GuardedID® product and the keystroke encryption portion of our MobileTrust® products.

In February 2014, we received a Notice of Allowance from the USPTO for our third patent relating to our “Multi-Channel Device Utilizing a Centralized Out-of-Band Authentication System” Patent No. 7,870,599. Upon receipt of this Out-of-Band patent we filed another continuation patent.

In March 2014, we received Notice of Allowance from the USPTO for our second patent and first continuation of our Keystroke Encryption patent, which only furthers our protection for all mobile devices when utilizing any keyboard for data entry. Upon receipt of this Notice, we also filed another continuation patent for Patent No. 8,566,608.

In April 2014, we were granted our third patent relating to our “Multi-Channel Device Utilizing a Centralized Out-of-Band Authentication System” Patent No. 8,713,701.

In September 2014, we filed an International Patent for MobileTrust® (PCT/US20114/029905).

In March 2015, we received our third patent from the USPTO, Patent No. 8,973,107, of our Keystroke Encryption patent. This enhances our position for our Keystroke Encryption product, GuardedID®, and our MobileTrust® product.

On March 28, 2013, we initiated patent litigation against PhoneFactor, Inc., a subsidiary of Microsoft Corporation, for alleged infringement of United States Patent No. 7,870,599 (the “‘599 Patent”). We filed a separate action against Microsoft Corporation based on its alleged infringement of the ‘599 Patent and two additional patents for out-of-band user authentication (U.S. Patent Nos.: 8,484,698 & 8,713,701). Both actions were filed in the U.S. District Court for the District of Delaware. On January 15, 2016, the litigation was settled and the parties executed a settlement agreement in the form of a Release and License Agreement. The terms and conditions of the Release and License Agreement are confidential except under limited conditions. As a consequence of the Release and License Agreement, the parties have moved to dismiss the action with prejudice, we have  licensed the patents to Microsoft Corporation, and we received a non-disclosable one-time lump sum payment.

In June 2020, we were awarded an International European Patent, Application #14763895.1, for MobileTrust®. While the MobileTrust® International Patent was granted in Europe, the patent application in the United States was rejected.

Our patent attorneys filed our fourth, fifth and sixth “Out of Band” continuation patents. We currently have three patents granted to us for Out-of-Band ProtectID® (Patent Nos.: 7,870,599, 8,484,698 and 8,713,701). MobileTrust® is also covered by our GuardedID® patents. We cannot provide assurances that the latter patents will be granted in fiscal 2023.

We plan to continue our strategy to aggressively enforce the patent rights relating to our granted Keystroke Encryption patents that help protect our GuardedID® and MobileTrust® products. We were granted three related keystroke encryption patents for which we received the most recent patent on March 3, 2015 (Patent Nos.: 8,566,608, 8,732,483 and 8,973,107). In June 2020, we also received an International Patent in Europe for MobileTrust® (Patent Approved: Application #14763895.1).

We have four trademarks that have been approved and registered: GuardedID®, MobileTrust® and CryptoColor®. Also, BlockSafe Technologies, Inc. has one registered trademark: CyberDefender®. A portion of our software is licensed from third parties and the remainder is developed by our own team of developers while leveraging some external consultant expertise as necessitated. We rely upon confidentiality agreements signed by our employees, consultants, and third parties to protect the intellectual property rights.

Business Strategy

Our primary strategy throughout 2023 is to focus on the growth and support of our channel partners, including distributors, resellers and original equipment manufacturers (OEMs) (subject to the impairments caused by COVID-19). Our internal sales team targets potential direct sales in industries that management believes provides the greatest potential for short term sales. These include small to medium sized financial institutions, government agencies, e-commerce, healthcare, legal and enterprise businesses. We are also executing agreements with strategic resellers and distributors for marketing, selling and supporting our products internationally. We primarily work with distributors, resellers and agents to generate the bulk of our sales internationally, realizing that this strategy takes longer to nurture, however it is progressing well. We are starting to realize positive results, however slowly, with our sales channel and anticipate, but cannot guarantee, a successful fiscal 2023, through the sales channel and from our new mobile and GuardedID® MAC, ZerifyMeet™ and ZerifyDefender™ products with a concentration of sales already contracted. There can be no assurances, however, that we will succeed in implementing our sales strategy. Although management believes that there is an increasingly strong market for our products as the need for cyber security solutions increases globally, we have not generated substantial revenue from the sale of our products and there is no assurance we can secure a market sufficient to permit us to achieve profitability in fiscal 2023 (subject to the impairments caused by the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic and the degree to which the economy rebounds post-pandemic).

Most of the costs that we incur are related to salaries, professional fees, marketing, sales and research & design. Our operations presently require funding of approximately $220,000 per month. We expect that our monthly cash usage for operations will increase slightly due to contracted and anticipated increased volumes and adding some targeted channel marketing programs. We anticipate that the areas in which we will experience the greatest increase in operating expenses is in marketing, selling, product support, product research and new technology development in the growing cyber security market. We are committed to maintaining our current level of operating costs until we reach the level of revenues needed to absorb any potential increase in costs.

Competition

The software development and services market is characterized by innovation and competition. There are several well-established companies within the authentication market that offer network security systems in our product market and newer companies with emerging technologies. We believe that our multi-patented “Out-of-Band” multi-factor identity authentication platform is an innovative, secure, adaptable, competitively priced, integrated network authentication platform. The main features of ProtectID® include: an open architecture “Out-of-Band” platform for user authentication; operating system independence; biometric layering; soft mobile tokens; mobile authentication; secure website logon; Virtual Private Network (“VPN”) access; domain authentication; newly added Office 365 authentication and multi-level authentication. Unlike other techniques for increased network security, ProtectID® does not rely on a specific authentication device or method (e.g., phone, tokens, smart cards, digital certificates, soft mobile tokens, or biometrics, such as a retinal or fingerprint scan). Rather ProtectID® has been developed as an “open platform” that incorporates an unlimited number of authentication devices and methods. For example, once a user has been identified to a computer network, a system deploying our ProtectID® authentication system permits the “Out-of-Band” authentication of that user by a telephone, iPhone, iPad, PDA, email, hard token, SSL client software, a biometric device such as a voice biometric, or others, before that user is permitted to access the network. By using “Out-of-Band” authentication methods, management believes that ProtectID®, now protected through our ongoing litigation, with plans for additional litigation, provides a competitive product for customers with security requirements greater than typical name and password schemes for virtual private networks and computer systems with multiple users at remote locations, as examples. We also believe that our multi-patented keystroke encryption product, GuardedID®, offers an additional competitive edge for network security and e-commerce applications that should provide greater levels of security and the ability to evolve over time based on newer technologies when made available. There is less competition for the keystroke encryption product and there are no well-established companies in this space, which explains our current growth in pilots and sales for GuardedID®, especially relating to bundled channel partner programs. GuardedID® is critical to help prevent key logging viruses, one of the largest sources of cyberattacks and data breaches. GuardedID® also is protected with three patents.

Our patented technologies are used in Zerify Meet™, our secure Video Conferencing Tool and Zerify Defender™, which adds five levels of security for Zerify Meet™ Premium, which we believe is more secure than Zoom, Teams and other competitors’ products available in the growing marketplace.

Although we believe that our suite of products offers competitive advantages, there is no assurance that any of these products will continue to increase its market share in the marketplace. Our competitors include established software and hardware companies that are likely to be better financed and to have established sales channels. Due to the high level of innovation in the software development industry, it is also possible that a competitor will introduce a product that provides a higher level of security than our products or which can be offered at prices that are more advantageous to the customer.

BlockSafe Technologies, Inc.

BlockSafe Technologies, Inc. (“BlockSafe”) was formed on December 1, 2017 in the State of Wyoming. BlockSafe is in the business of providing total cyber security solutions and has the licensee from us of our desktop anti-malware product called “GuardedID^®” and our one-of-a-kind mobile application called “MobileTrust®”. BlockSafe is intended to be developed as an enterprise focused on using our licensed technology in the field of cryptocurrency and its use of blockchains. Small revenues have been generated to date, primarily due to the effects of the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic. There can be no assurances on the success of this project or any profitability arising from BlockSafe.

In prior years, the Company agreed to issue crypto currency tokens as part of its financing activities. As of December 31, 2022, no tokens have been developed or issued. There is no assurance as to whether, or at what amount, or on what terms, tokens will be available. Moreover, there can be no assurance how such technology will function, which could expose us to legal and regulatory issues. Cryptocurrency and its use of blockchains is still in the development stage and receiving mixed results. The Securities and Exchange Commission has, in its dissemination of information to the public, expressed that tokens in the United States would be treated as securities pursuant to the Howey Test. This standard has been adopted, in various forms, in numerous other jurisdictions. The European Union and China are contemplating their own form of cryptocurrency and Facebook Libra cryptocurrency recently lost the support of PayPal (see https://www.independent.co.uk/topic/cryptocurrency, which article is not incorporated by reference to this filing). On March 30, 2022, the Securities and Exchange Commission’s Division of Examinations announced its 2022 examination priorities which included the review of the use of crypto-assets as one of its top five priorities for review. This review and any regulatory rules and regulations arising from this review may impact the BlockSafe business. In addition, legal and regulatory developments could render the technology impermissible, which could have a material adverse effect on BlockSafe and us.

At December 31, 2022, noncontrolling interests represent 51% of BlockSafe. BlockSafe meets the definition of a variable interest entity (“VIE”) and based on the determination that we are the primary beneficiary of BlockSafe, we consolidated BlockSafe’s operating results, assets and liabilities. We and BlockSafe have a management agreement pursuant to which BlockSafe shall remit a management fee of $36,000 per month to us, and when BlockSafe reaches a milestone of $1,000,000 in financing, an additional management fee of $5,000,000 shall be owed to us, payable monthly over three years. The management fee is eliminated in consolidation. At December 31, 2022 and 2021, the amount of VIE cash on the accompanying consolidated balance sheets can be used only to settle obligations of BlockSafe, and the amounts of VIE accounts payable, VIE Notes Payable, VIE Accrued Interest, and VIE Financing Obligation have no recourse to our  general credit. .

In June 2018, two members of our management team, George Waller, our Executive Vice President and Ramarao Pemmaraju, our Chief Technical Officer, were appointed to BlockSafe to serve as the Chief Executive Officer and Chief Technical Officer, respectively. Additionally, our Chief Executive Officer of Zerify, Mark L. Kay, also an appointee to the Board of Directors of BlockSafe, was appointed as Chairman and President of BlockSafe.

In 2018, our  consolidated subsidiary, BlockSafe, issued promissory notes to investors in the aggregate of $775,500. As part of each promissory note agreement BlockSafe agreed to pay a financing obligation to the note holders equal to the note principal in tokens, as defined, to be issued by BlockSafe. In December 2018, BlockSafe agreed to issue 200,000 cryptocurrency tokens to an unrelated party for receipt of $50,000. In February 2019, the agreement was amended and the unrelated party is to receive an additional 100,000 tokens. No such tokens have been developed or issued as of December 31, 2022.

From February 2019 to March 2019, BlockSafe agreed to issue 450,000 cryptocurrency tokens and 56,250 restricted shares of BlockSafe common stock to four unrelated parties for receipt of $122,500. The tokens or restricted stock of BlockSafe have not been issued as of December 31, 2022.

From March to April 2019, five of the BlockSafe noteholders agreed to convert $295,500 of principal and $19,700 of accrued interest into 1,845,041 cryptocurrency tokens to be issued by BlockSafe. The tokens have not been issued as of December 31, 2022.

We have used the funds received from investors pursuant to the promissory notes for the efforts mentioned below to develop the Tokens and to develop an additional product and prepare it for sale. We currently do not require additional funds for the development efforts.

The steps we have taken to date in our efforts to develop tokens include completing a formal plan for the Tokens, obtaining professional advice regarding the legal implications of developing tokens, and we have a blockchain for our Tokens (BSAFE®). We have not yet finalized a budget for the development of Tokens, or hired a full development team, or completed the development of Tokens, and we have not developed any payment, trading, or custody platform or infrastructure related to the Tokens. The failure to develop or issue these Tokens as of December 31, 2022 does not constitute an event of default under the promissory notes. It should be noted however that the promissory notes were not repaid pursuant to their terms and are currently in default.

At December 31, 2021, our  consolidated subsidiary, BlockSafe, had recorded a financing obligation of $1,263,000 to be paid in tokens, as defined. At December 31, 2021 and through the date of this filing, BlockSafe. has not completed the development or issued any tokens. At December 31, 2022, as the development of the tokens has not been completed and tokens do not exist, and any amounts received for tokens are not considered equity or revenue, management determined that 100% of the obligation of $1,263,000 is a liability to be settled by BlockSafe., through the issuance of tokens, or through other means if tokens are never issued.

We have stated to the note holders that once Zerify has the funds or BlockSafe sells the Tokens, the intent is to satisfy the outstanding balances as soon as possible. In the event that we are unable to satisfy the outstanding balances of the Notes, it could have a material adverse effect on our business, financial condition and results of operations.    

In March 2019, an increase of the authorized shares of BlockSafe’s common stock from one thousand (1,000) to one hundred million (100,000,000), $0.0001 par value, was ratified, effective upon the filing of an amendment to BlockSafe’s Certificate of Incorporation with the Wyoming Secretary of State. The amendment was adopted in March 2019.

In March 2019, a 1:15,000 forward stock split of BlockSafe’s issued and outstanding shares of common stock was ratified, effective upon the filing of an amendment to BlockSafe’s Certificate of Incorporation with the Wyoming Secretary of State. The amendment was adopted in March 2019.

Cybersecurity Risk Solutions, LLC

On April 15, 2021, StrikeForce formally closed a Member Interest Purchase Agreement in which StrikeForce acquired the entire Member Interests of Cybersecurity Risk Solutions, LLC, a New Jersey limited liability company. In April 2021, we issued 500,000 shares of common stock with a fair value of $36,000, for the purchase of Cybersecurity Risk Solutions, LLC. At the date of acquisition, Cybersecurity Risk Solutions, LLC had nominal assets and liabilities, no revenues and limited operating history. Furthermore, we also determined that the acquisition did not meet the requirement of a significant acquisition pursuant to the regulations of the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Cybersecurity Risk Solutions, LLC is a cybersecurity firm offering cyber, privacy & data protection services including a personal cyber risk assessment, the industry’s first cyber health score, report and custom action plan, as well as ongoing vulnerability scanning, hack monitoring and dark web intelligence monitoring. For more information, go to https://SecureCyberID.com (which website is expressly not included in this filing). Will Lynch, the prior sole member of Cybersecurity Risk Solutions, LLC was hired by StrikeForce as the Director of Channel Distribution and not as a Named Executive Officer. A Director of Channel Distribution develops, services, and grows relationships with clients. Mr. Lynch has an annual salary of $100,000 and will also receive 2% net of all Channel sales. Mr. Lynch reports to our Executive Vice President and Marketing Director.

Mr.Lynch, Director of Channel Distribution, tendered his resignation on December 2, 2022 and hasn’t been replaced at StrikeForce, now called Zerify. Cybersecurity Risk Solutions is still in business and selling its products.

Employees

As of fiscal year ended December 31, 2022, we had 16 employees and our relations with employees are good.

WHERE YOU CAN FIND MORE INFORMATION

You are advised to read this Form 10-K in conjunction with other reports and documents that we file from time to time with the SEC. In particular, please read our Quarterly Reports on Form 10-Q and Current Reports on Form 8-K that we file from time to time. You may obtain copies of these reports directly from us or from the SEC at the SEC’s Public Reference Room at 100 F. Street, N.E. Washington, D.C. 20549, and you may obtain information about obtaining access to the Reference Room by calling the SEC at 1-800-SEC-0330. In addition, the SEC maintains information for electronic filers at its website http://www.sec.gov.

ITEM 1A. RISK FACTORS

The risk factors required pursuant to Regulation S-K, Item 503(c) are not required for smaller reporting companies, however, we have determined to provide particular risk factors herein.  e. The risks and uncertainties described below are not the only ones facing us. Other events that we do not currently anticipate or that we currently deem immaterial also may affect our results of operations and financial condition. If any events described in the risk factors actually occur, our business, operating results, prospects and financial condition could be materially harmed. In connection with the forward-looking statements that appear elsewhere in this annual report, you should also carefully review the cautionary statement referred to under “Special Note Regarding Forward Looking Statements.” The forward-looking statements made in this report relate only to events as of the date on which the statements are made. We undertake no obligation to update any forward-looking statement to reflect events or circumstances after the date on which the statement is made or to reflect the occurrence of unanticipated events.

SHOULD ONE OR MORE OF THE FOREGOING RISKS OR UNCERTAINTIES MATERIALIZE, OR SHOULD THE UNDERLYING ASSUMPTIONS OF OUR BUSINESS PROVE INCORRECT, ACTUAL RESULTS MAY DIFFER SIGNIFICANTLY FROM THOSE ANTICIPATED, BELIEVED, ESTIMATED, EXPECTED, INTENDED OR PLANNED.

OUR INDEPENDENT REGISTERED PUBLIC ACCOUNTING FIRM HAS EXPRESSED SUBSTANTIAL DOUBT ABOUT OUR ABILITY TO CONTINUE AS A GOING CONCERN, WHICH MAY HINDER OUR ABILITY TO OBTAIN FUTURE FINANCING.

We have yet to establish any history of profitable operations. For the year ended December 31, 2022, we incurred a net loss of $8,829,000 and used cash in operating activities of $4,258,000, and at December 31, 2022, we had a stockholders’ deficit of $14,855,000. Also, at December 31, 2022, we are in default on notes payable and convertible notes payable in the aggregate amount of $2,825,000. These factors raise substantial doubt about our ability to continue as a going concern within one year of the date that these financial statements are issued. As a result, our independent registered public accounting firm included an explanatory paragraph in its report on our financial statements as of and for the year ended December 31, 2022 with respect to this uncertainty. This going concern opinion could materially limit our ability to raise additional funds through the issuance of new debt or equity securities and future reports on our financial statements may also include an explanatory paragraph with respect to our ability to continue as a going concern.

At December 31, 2022, we had cash on hand in the amount of $192,000. Subsequent to December 31, 2022, we received proceeds of $813,000 on the sale of common shares and warrants (see Note 15 to the accompanying consolidated financial statements). We believe we have enough cash to sustain operations through June 30, 2023. Our ability to continue as a going concern is dependent upon our ability to continue to implement our business plan. Currently, management is attempting to increase revenues by selling through a channel of distributors, value added resellers, strategic partners and original equipment manufacturers. While we believe in the viability of our strategy to increase revenues, there can be no assurances to that effect. Our ability to continue as a going concern is dependent upon our ability to increase our customer base and realize increased revenues. No assurance can be given that any future financing, if needed, will be available or, if available, that it will be on terms that are satisfactory to us. Even if we are able to obtain additional financing, if needed, it may contain undue restrictions on our operations, in the case of debt financing, or cause substantial dilution for our stockholders, in the case of equity financing.

We completed the development of our ProtectID® platform at the end of June 2006, we completed the core development of our keyboard encryption and anti-keylogger product, GuardedID®, in December 2006 and commenced deployment of our new mobile product, MobileTrust® into the mobile stores in 2015. We completed GuardedID® in 2016 and SafeVchat™ and PrivacyLok™ in 2021. Presently, (except for Zerify Meet™ and PrivacyLok™ which are in beta testing although we already earned revenues from Zerify Meet™ and Zerify Defender™ in 2022), all of the products are being sold and distributed. Our suite of products is targeted to the financial, e-commerce, corporate, government, healthcare, legal, insurance, technology and retail markets. We seek to locate customers in a variety of ways. These primarily include contracts with value added resellers and distributors (both inside the United States and internationally), direct sales calls initiated by our internal staff, exhibitions at security and technology trade shows, through the media, through consulting agreements, and through our agent relationships. Our sales generate revenue either as an Original Equipment Manufacturer (“OEM”) model, through a Hosting/License agreement, bundled with other of our products or through direct purchase by distributors and resellers. We price our products for cloud consumer transactions based on the number of transactions in which our software products are utilized. We also price our products for business applications based on the number of users. These pricing models provide us with one-time, monthly, quarterly and annual recurring revenues with volume discounts. We are also generating revenues from annual maintenance contracts, renewal fees and expect, but cannot guarantee, an increase in revenues based upon the execution of various agreements that we have recently concluded, primarily in the retail and insurance sectors.

WE WILL FACE INTENSE COMPETITION FROM OUR COMPETITORS THAT HAVE GREATER FINANCIAL, TECHNICAL AND MARKETING RESOURCES THAN WE DO. THESE COMPETITIVE FORCES MAY IMPACT OUR PROJECTED GROWTH AND ABILITY TO GENERATE REVENUES AND PROFITS, WHICH WOULD HAVE A NEGATIVE IMPACT ON OUR BUSINESS AND THE VALUE OF YOUR INVESTMENT.

We likely will face competition from alternate security software programs and services. As is typical of a new industry, demand and market acceptance for recently introduced services are subject to a high level of uncertainty and risk. In addition, the software industry is characterized by frequent innovation. As the market for computer security products evolves, it will be necessary for us to continually modify and enhance our existing products and develop new products. We believe that our competitors will enhance existing product lines and introduce new products. If we are unable to update our software to compete or to meet announced schedules for improvements and enhancements, it is likely that our sales will suffer and that potential customers will be lost to a competing company’s product.

Because the market for our services is new and evolving, it is difficult to predict the future growth rate, if any, and the size of this market. Substantial marketing activities have been implemented and will continue to be required to meet our revenue and profit goals. There can be no assurance we will be successful in such marketing efforts. There can be no assurance either that the market for our services will develop or become sustainable. Further, other companies may decide to provide services similar to ours. These companies may be better capitalized than us and we could face significant competition in pricing and services offered.

IF WE DO NOT ADEQUATELY PROTECT THE INTELLECTUAL PROPERTY RIGHTS, WE MAY EXPERIENCE A LOSS OF REVENUE AND OUR OPERATIONS MAY BE MATERIALLY IMPAIRED.

We rely upon confidentiality agreements signed by our employees, consultants and third parties to protect the intellectual property. These agreements generally provide that the individual must keep confidential and not disclose to other parties any confidential information developed or learned by the individual during the course of the individual’s relationship with us except in limited circumstances. These agreements generally also provide that we shall own all inventions conceived by the individual in the course of rendering services to us. These agreements may not effectively prevent disclosure of confidential information or result in the effective assignment to us of intellectual property and may not provide an adequate remedy in the event of unauthorized disclosure of confidential information or other breaches of the agreements. In addition, others may independently discover trade secrets and proprietary information that have been licensed to us or that we own, and in such case we could not assert any trade secret rights against such party.

We cannot assure that we can adequately protect the intellectual property or successfully prosecute potential infringement of the intellectual property rights. Also, we cannot assure that others will not assert rights in, or ownership of, trademarks and other proprietary rights of ours or that we will be able to successfully resolve these types of conflicts to our satisfaction. Failure to protect the intellectual property rights would result in a loss of revenue and could adversely affect our operations and financial condition.

OUR INABILITY TO RETAIN OUR KEY EXECUTIVE OFFICERS WOULD IMPEDE OUR BUSINESS PLAN AND GROWTH STRATEGIES, WHICH COULD HAVE A NEGATIVE IMPACT ON OUR BUSINESS AND THE VALUE OF YOUR INVESTMENT.

Our success depends, to a critical extent, on the continued efforts and services of our Chief Executive Officer, Mark L. Kay, our Chief Technical Officer and Inventor, Ramarao Pemmaraju, our Chief Technical Officer, and our Executive Vice President and Head of Marketing, George Waller. Were we to lose any of our key executive officers, we would be forced to expend significant time and money in the pursuit of a replacement, which would result in both a delay in the implementation of our business plan and the diversion of limited working capital. We can give you no assurance that we can find satisfactory replacements for these key executive officers at all, or on terms that are not unduly expensive or burdensome. We do not currently carry key-man life insurance policies on any of our employees, which would assist us in recouping our costs in the event of the loss of those officers.

THE INABILITY TO MANAGE OUR GROWTH COULD IMPEDE OUR ABILITY TO GENERATE REVENUES AND PROFITS AND TO OTHERWISE IMPLEMENT OUR BUSINESS PLAN AND GROWTH STRATEGIES, WHICH WOULD HAVE A NEGATIVE IMPACT ON OUR BUSINESS AND THE VALUE OF YOUR INVESTMENT.

We plan to grow rapidly, which will place strains on our management team and other of our resources to both implement more sophisticated managerial, operational and financial systems, procedures and controls and to hire, train and manage the personnel necessary to implement those functions. Our staff is currently comprised of ten people and we believe that in order for us to achieve our goals, it will be necessary to further expand our personnel, particularly in the area of sales, support services, technology development and client support. As we grow, we also expect to increase detailed and pertinent internal and administrative controls and procedures, require further product enhancements and customization of our existing products for specific clients, as well as enter new geographic markets. We do not presently have in place the corporate infrastructure common to larger organizations. We do not, for example, have a separate human resources department or purchasing department designed for a larger organization. Some of our key personnel do not have experience managing large numbers of personnel. Substantial expansion of our organization will require the acquisition of additional information systems and equipment, a larger physical space and formal management of human resources. It will require that we expand the number of people within our organization providing additional administrative support (or consider outsourcing) and to develop and implement additional internal controls appropriate for a larger organization. Our experience to date in managing the minimal growth has been positive, without product failures or breakdowns of internal controls. 

The time and costs to effectuate our business development process may place a significant strain on our management personnel, systems and resources, particularly given the limited amount of financial resources and skilled employees that may be available at the time. There can be no assurance that we will integrate and manage successfully new systems, controls and procedures for our business, or that our systems, controls, procedures, facilities and personnel, even if successfully integrated, will be adequate to support our projected future operations. There can be no assurance that any expenditure incurred during this expansion will ever be recouped. Any failure to implement and maintain such changes could have a material adverse effect on our business, financial condition and results of operations.

THE REGULATION OF PENNY STOCKS BY SEC AND FINRA (FINANCIAL INDUSTRY REGULATORY AUTHORITY, INC.) MAY DISCOURAGE THE TRADABILITY OF OUR SECURITIES AND THEREBY MAKE IT HARD FOR INVESTORS TO SELL THEIR SHARES AT THE TIME AND PRICES THEY MIGHT OTHERWISE EXPECT.

We are a “penny stock” company. We are subject to a Securities and Exchange Commission rule that imposes special sales practice requirements upon broker-dealers who sell such securities to persons other than established customers or accredited investors. For purposes of the rule, the phrase “accredited investors” means, in general terms, institutions with assets in excess of $5,000,000, or individuals having a net worth in excess of $1,000,000 or having an annual income that exceeds $200,000 (or that, when combined with a spouse’s income, exceeds $300,000). For transactions covered by the rule, the broker-dealer must make a special suitability determination of the purchaser and receive the purchaser’s written agreement to the transaction prior to the sale. Effectively, this discourages broker-dealers from executing trades in penny stocks. Consequently, the rule will affect the ability of purchasers in this offering to sell their securities in any market that might develop, because it imposes additional regulatory burdens on penny stock transactions.

In addition, the Securities and Exchange Commission has adopted a number of rules to regulate “penny stocks”. Such rules include Rules 3a51-1, 15g-1, 15g-2, 15g-3, 15g-4, 15g-5, 15g-6, and 15g-9 under the Securities and Exchange Act of 1934, as amended. Because our securities constitute “penny stocks” within the meaning of the rules, the rules would apply to us and to our securities. The rules will further affect the ability of owners of shares to sell their securities in a market that might develop for them because it imposes additional regulatory burdens on penny stock transactions.

Shareholders should be aware that, according to the Securities and Exchange Commission Release No. 34-29093, the market for penny stocks has suffered in recent years from patterns of fraud and abuse. Such patterns include (i) control of the market for the security by one or a few broker-dealers that are often related to the promoter or issuer; (ii) manipulation of prices through prearranged matching of purchases and sales and false and misleading press releases; (iii) “boiler room” practices involving high-pressure sales tactics and unrealistic price projections by inexperienced sales persons; (iv) excessive and undisclosed bid-ask differentials and markups by selling broker-dealers; and (v) the wholesale dumping of the same securities by promoters and broker-dealers after prices have been manipulated to a desired level, leaving investors with losses. Our management is aware of the abuses that have occurred historically in the penny stock market. Although we do not expect to be in a position to dictate the behavior of the market or of broker-dealers who participate in the market, management will strive within the confines of practical limitations to prevent the described patterns from being established with respect to our securities.

RULE 144 SALES IN THE FUTURE MAY HAVE A DEPRESSIVE EFFECT ON OUR STOCK PRICE AS AN INCREASE IN SUPPLY OF SHARES FOR SALE, WITH NO CORRESPONDING INCREASE IN DEMAND WILL CAUSE PRICES TO FALL.

All of the outstanding shares of common stock held by the present officers, directors, and affiliate stockholders are “restricted securities” within the meaning of Rule 144 under the Securities Act of 1933, as amended. As restricted shares, these shares may be resold only pursuant to an effective registration statement or under the requirements of Rule 144 or other applicable exemptions from registration under the Act and as required under applicable state securities laws. Rule 144 provides in essence that a person who is an affiliate or officer or director who has held restricted securities for six months may, under certain conditions, sell every three months, in brokerage transactions, a number of shares that does not exceed the greater of 1.0% of a company’s outstanding common stock. There is no limit on the amount of restricted securities that may be sold by a non-affiliate after the owner has held the restricted securities for a period of six months if the company is a current reporting company under the 1934 Act. A sale under Rule 144 or under any other exemption from the Act, if available, or pursuant to subsequent registration of shares of common stock of present stockholders, may have a depressive effect upon the price of the common stock in any market that may develop.

FINRA SALES PRACTICE REQUIREMENTS MAY ALSO LIMIT A STOCKHOLDER’S ABILITY TO BUY AND SELL OUR STOCK.

In addition to the “penny stock” rules described above, the Financial Industry Regulatory Authority (FINRA) has adopted rules that require that in recommending an investment to a customer, a broker-dealer must have reasonable grounds for believing that the investment is suitable for that customer. Prior to recommending speculative low-priced securities to their non-institutional customers, broker-dealers must make reasonable efforts to obtain information about the customer’s financial status, tax status, investment objectives and other information. Under interpretations of these rules, FINRA believes that there is a high probability that speculative low-priced securities will not be suitable for at least some customers. FINRA requirements make it more difficult for broker-dealers to recommend that their customers buy our common stock, which may limit your ability to buy and sell our stock and have an adverse effect on the market for our shares.

BECAUSE WE ARE QUOTED ON THE OTCMARKETS.COM INSTEAD OF AN EXCHANGE OR NATIONAL QUOTATION SYSTEM, OUR INVESTORS MAY HAVE A MORE DIFFICULT TIME SELLING THEIR STOCK OR EXPERIENCE NEGATIVE VOLATILITY ON THE MARKET PRICE OF OUR STOCK.

Our common stock is traded on OTCMarkets.com. The OTCMarkets.com is often highly illiquid. There is a greater chance of volatility for securities that trade on the OTCMarkets.com as compared to a national exchange or quotation system. This volatility may be caused by a variety of factors, including the lack of readily available price quotations, the absence of consistent administrative supervision of bid and ask quotations, lower trading volume, and market conditions. Investors in our common stock may experience high fluctuations in the market price and volume of the trading market for our securities. These fluctuations, when they occur, have a negative effect on the market price for our securities. Accordingly, for the reasons above, our stockholders may not be able to realize a fair price from their shares when they determine to sell them or may have to hold them for a substantial period of time until the market for our common stock improves.

WE HAVE IDENTIFIED MATERIAL WEAKNESSES IN OUR DISCLOSURE CONTROLS AND PROCEDURES AND INTERNAL CONTROL OVER FINANCIAL REPORTING.

Maintaining effective internal control over financial reporting and effective disclosure controls and procedures are necessary for us to produce reliable financial statements. As discussed in Item 9A – “Controls and Procedures” of this Form 10-K, we have evaluated our internal control over financial reporting and our disclosure controls and procedures and concluded that they were not effective as of December 31, 2022.

A material weakness is defined as a deficiency, or a combination of deficiencies, in internal control over financial reporting such that there is a reasonable possibility that a material misstatement of our annual or interim financial statements will not be prevented or detected on a timely basis. The material weaknesses we identified are (1) We do not have written documentation of our internal control policies and procedures. Written documentation of key internal controls over financial reporting is a requirement of Section 404 of the Sarbanes-Oxley Act which is applicable to us as of and for the year ended December 31, 2022. Management evaluated the impact of our failure to have written documentation of our internal controls and procedures on our assessment of our disclosure controls and procedures and has concluded that the control deficiency that resulted represented a material weakness; (2) Our board of directors has no independent director or member with financial expertise which causes ineffective oversight of our external financial reporting and internal control over financial reporting; (3) We do not have sufficient segregation of duties within accounting functions, which is a basic internal control. Due to our size and nature, segregation of all conflicting duties may not always be possible and may not be economically feasible. However, to the extent possible, the initiation of transactions, the custody of assets and the recording of transactions should be performed by separate individuals. Management evaluated the impact of our failure to have segregation of duties on our assessment of our disclosure controls and procedures and has concluded that the control deficiency that resulted represented a material weakness.

We are committed to remediating its material weaknesses as promptly as possible. Implementation of our  remediation plans has commenced and is being overseen by the board. However, there can be no assurance as to when these material weaknesses will be remediated or that additional material weaknesses will not arise in the future. Even effective internal control can provide only reasonable assurance with respect to the preparation and fair presentation of financial statements. Any failure to remediate the material weaknesses, or the development of new material weaknesses in our internal control over financial reporting, could result in material misstatements in our financial statements, which in turn could have a material adverse effect on our financial condition and the trading price of our common stock and we could fail to meet our financial reporting obligations. We have identified weaknesses in our internal controls, and we cannot provide assurances that these weaknesses will be effectively remediated or that additional material weaknesses will not occur in the future.

If not remediated, our failure to establish and maintain effective disclosure controls and procedures and internal control over financial reporting could result in material misstatements in our financial statements and a failure to meet our reporting and financial obligations, each of which could have a material adverse effect on our financial condition and the trading price of our common stock.

VOLATILITY IN OUR COMMON SHARE PRICE MAY SUBJECT US TO SECURITIES LITIGATION, THEREBY DIVERTING OUR RESOURCES THAT MAY HAVE A MATERIAL EFFECT ON OUR PROFITABILITY AND RESULTS OF OPERATIONS.

As discussed in the preceding risk factors, the market for our common shares is characterized by significant price volatility when compared to seasoned issuers, and we expect that our share price will continue to be more volatile than a seasoned issuer for the indefinite future. In the past, plaintiffs have often initiated securities class action litigation against a company following periods of volatility in the market price of its securities. We may in the future be the target of similar litigation. Securities litigation could result in substantial costs and liabilities and could divert management’s attention and resources.

COMPLIANCE WITH CHANGING REGULATION OF CORPORATE GOVERNANCE AND PUBLIC DISCLOSURE WILL RESULT IN ADDITIONAL EXPENSES AND POSE CHALLENGES FOR OUR MANAGEMENT TEAM.

Changing laws, regulations and standards relating to corporate governance and public disclosure, including the Dodd-Frank Wall Street Reform and Consumer Protection Act and the rules and regulations promulgated thereunder, the Sarbanes-Oxley Act and SEC regulations, have created uncertainty for public companies and significantly increased the costs and risks associated with accessing the U.S. public markets. In addition, the current federal administration has indicated significant regulatory modifications and we cannot foresee the impact of any revised regulations. Our management team will need to devote significant time and financial resources to comply with both existing and evolving standards for public companies, including the policies of the recently appointed Chairman of the SEC, which will lead to increased general and administrative expenses and a diversion of management time and attention from revenue generating activities to compliance activities.

COVID-19.

We cannot, at this point, determine the extent to which ongoing COVID-19 pandemic will impact business or the economy as both are highly uncertain and cannot be predicted.

THE OUTBREAK OF THE CORONAVIRUS MAY NEGATIVELY IMPACT SOURCING AND MANUFACTURING OF THE PRODUCTS THAT WE SELL AS WELL AS CONSUMER SPENDING, WHICH COULD ADVERSELY AFFECT OUR BUSINESS, RESULTS OF OPERATIONS AND FINANCIAL CONDITION.

In December 2019, a novel strain of coronavirus was reported to have surfaced in Wuhan, China, which has and is continuing to spread throughout China and other parts of the world, including the United States. On January 30, 2020, the World Health Organization declared the outbreak of the coronavirus disease (COVID-19) a “Public Health Emergency of International Concern.” On January 31, 2020, U.S. Health and Human Services Secretary Alex M. Azar II declared a public health emergency for the United States to aid the U.S. healthcare community in responding to COVID-19, and on March 11, 2020 the World Health Organization characterized the outbreak as a “pandemic”. The significant outbreak of COVID-19 has resulted in a widespread health crisis that could adversely affect the economies and financial markets worldwide, and could adversely affect our business, results of operations and financial condition.

In addition, we applied for funding pursuant to the Small Business Administration program. The Paycheck Protection Program provided forgivable funding for payroll and related costs as well as some non-payroll costs. We applied for funding and we received (on April 17, 2020) funding in the amount of $313,000. In June 2021, the April 2020 PPP loan of $313,000 was forgiven by the SBA. Pursuant to ASC 470, Debt, we recorded a gain of $313,000 to extinguish the PPP loan and accrued interest of $4,000. The Economic Injury Disaster Loan provides low-interest, long-term financing. We applied for funding and received (on May 18, 2020) funding in the amount of $150,000. In March 2021, we applied for funding and were approved for a second round of Paycheck Protection Program forgivable financing in the amount of $177,000. In November 2021, the March 2021 PPP loan of $177,000 was forgiven by the SBA. Pursuant to ASC 470, Debt, we recorded a gain of $177,000 to extinguish the PPP loan and accrued interest of $1,000.

THE OUTBREAK OF THE COVID-19 MAY ADVERSELY AFFECT OUR CUSTOMERS.

Further, such risks as described above could also adversely affect our customers’ financial condition, resulting in reduced spending for the merchandise we sell. Risks related to an epidemic, pandemic or other health crisis, such as COVID-19, could also lead to the complete or partial closure of one or more of our facilities or operations of our sourcing partners. The ultimate extent of the impact of any epidemic, pandemic or other health crisis on our business, financial condition and results of operations will depend on future developments, which are highly uncertain and cannot be predicted, including new information that may emerge concerning the severity of such epidemic, pandemic or other health crisis and actions taken to contain or prevent their further spread, among others. These and other potential impacts of an epidemic, pandemic or other health crisis, such as COVID-19, could therefore materially and adversely affect our business, financial condition and results of operations.

An economic recession had set in from the pandemic in 2020 and continued into 2021. Some companies are not receiving payments and in turn, as a consequence of limited cash flow, are not prepared to purchase our products. COVID-19 has led to some of our customers and potential customers being stricken with the virus causing them to not be able to work for many weeks and therefore causing delays for us in our marketing decisions. This outbreak could decrease spending, adversely affect demand for our products, and harm our business and results of operations. It is not possible for us to predict the duration or magnitude of the adverse results of the outbreak or the timing and the degree to which economic recovery will be realized post-pandemic and, consequently, its effects on our business or results of operations, financial condition, or liquidity, at this time.

The global impact of COVID-19 and actions taken to reduce its spread continues to rapidly evolve and we will continue to monitor the situation and the effects on our business and operations closely. We do not yet know the full extent of potential impacts on our business or operations or on the global economy as a whole, particularly if the COVID-19 pandemic continues and persists for an extended period of time. The length of time it may take for global vaccine distribution and more normal economic and operating conditions to resume remains uncertain and the economic recovery period could continue for a prolonged period even after the health risks of the pandemic subside. Given the uncertainty, we cannot reasonably estimate the impact on our future results of operations, cash flows or financial condition. To the extent the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic adversely affects our business and results of operations, it may also have the effect of heightening many of the other risks and uncertainties described in this “Risk Factors” section of this Annual Report. We will continue to evaluate the nature and extent of COVID-19’s impact to our business, consolidated results of operations, financial condition and liquidity, and our results presented herein are not necessarily indicative of the results to be expected for future years.

THE OUTBREAK OF COVID-19 HAS RESULTED IN A WIDESPREAD HEALTH CRISIS THAT COULD ADVERSELY AFFECT THE ECONOMIES AND FINANCIAL MARKETS WORLDWIDE AND COULD EXPONENTIALLY INCREASE THE RISK FACTORS DESCRIBED IN OUR PRIOR FILINGS.

SHOULD ONE OR MORE OF THE FOREGOING RISKS OR UNCERTAINTIES MATERIALIZE, OR SHOULD THE UNDERLYING ASSUMPTIONS PROVE INCORRECT, ACTUAL RESULTS MAY DIFFER SIGNIFICANTLY FROM THOSE ANTICIPATED, BELIEVED, ESTIMATED, EXPECTED, INTENDED OR PLANNED.

Special Note Regarding Forward-Looking Statements

This Annual Report contains forward-looking statements about our business, financial condition and prospects that reflect our management’s assumptions and good faith beliefs based on information currently available. We can give no assurance that the expectations indicated by such forward-looking statements will be realized. If any of our assumptions should prove incorrect, or if any of the risks and uncertainties underlying such expectations should materialize, our actual results may differ materially from those indicated by the forward-looking statements.

The key factors that are not within our control and that may have a direct bearing on operating results include, but are not limited to, acceptance of our proposed services and the products we expect to market, our ability to establish a customer base, managements’ ability to raise capital in the future, the retention of key employees and changes in the regulation of our industry.

There may be other risks and circumstances that management may be unable to predict. When used in this filing, words such as, “believes,” “expects,” “intends,” “plans,” “anticipates,” “estimates” and similar expressions are intended to identify and qualify forward-looking statements, although there may be certain forward-looking statements not accompanied by such expressions.

ITEM 1B. UNRESOLVED STAFF COMMENTS

This Item is not applicable to us as we are not an accelerated filer, a large accelerated filer, or a well-seasoned issuer; however, we have not received written comments from the Commission staff regarding our periodic or current reports under the Securities Exchange Act of 1934 within the last 180 days before the end of our last fiscal year.

ITEM 2. PROPERTIES

We operate from leased offices located at 1090 King Georges Post Road, Suite #603, Edison, New Jersey 08837. We do not hold any material investments in other real or personal property other than office equipment. We paid a monthly base rent of $4,542 from February 2020 through January 2021 and $4,678 from February 2021 through January 2022. We paid a monthly base rent of $4,818 from February 2022 through January 2023 and currently paying $4,963 from February 2023 thru January 2024. Our leased offices are adequate for our needs.

ITEM 3. LEGAL PROCEEDINGS

Constantino Zanfardino, Derivatively on Behalf of Nominal Defendant Zerify, Inc., formerly known as Strikeforce Technologies, Inc. v. Mark L. Kay, Ramarao Pemmaraju and George Waller, Defendants, and Zerify, Inc. formerly known as Strikeforce Technologies, Inc., Nominal Defendant (U.S. District Court, District of New Jersey, Civil Action No. 2:22-cv-07258-MCA-AME)

On December 13, 2022, a claimed stockholder, Constantino Zanfardino (“Plaintiff”),  filed a stockholder derivative Complaint against the Company’s directors, Mark L. Kay, Ramarao Pemmaraju and George Waller (collectively, “Defendants”). Plaintiff asserts claims against each of the Defendants for breach of fiduciary duty, waste of corporate assets and unjust enrichment resulting from Defendants’ alleged wrongdoing in their management of the Company.   Through the litigation, Plaintiff seeks judgment against each of the Defendants in favor of the Company. On March 3, 2023, the Defendants’ filed a Memorandum of Law in Support of their Motion to Dismiss Plaintiff’s Complaint.  On March 10, 2023, the Defendants served a motion to dismiss the complaint  upon the Plaintiff.  The Plaintiff’s opposition to the Defendants’ motion to dismiss is due on May 9, 2023.   Defendants are vigorously defending this litigation. At this time, it is not possible to estimate the ultimate outcome of this litigation.

Onstream Media Corporation

The Company is currently engaged in several patent litigations brought by Onstream Media Corporation in the United States District Court, District of Wyoming. The parties are currently in negotiations to resolve all of the pending cases.

The cases and their filing dates follow:

ITEM 4. MINE SAFETY DISCLOSURES.

Not applicable.

PART II

ITEM 5. MARKET FOR REGISTRANT’S COMMON EQUITY, RELATED STOCKHOLDER MATTERS AND ISSUER PURCHASES OF EQUITY SECURITIES.

(A) MARKET INFORMATION

Our registration statement on Form SB-2 was declared effective by the SEC in August 2005 and our shares were approved for listing on the OTC Bulletin Board by the Financial Industry Regulatory Authority (FINRA) in December 2005. Prior to December 2005, there was no public market for the common stock. Our common stock is currently quoted on the OTC Electronic Bulletin Board maintained by OTCMarkets.com (OTC: Pink) under the symbol “ZRFY”. The following sets forth high and low bid price quotations for each calendar quarter during the last fiscal years that trading occurred or quotations were available, calculated based on the result post-prior reverse splits of our common stock. Such quotations reflect inter-dealer prices, without retail mark-up, mark-down or commission and may not represent actual transactions.

The closing bid price for our shares of common stock on March 9, 2023 was $.0055.

Our common stock is considered a low-priced security under the “Penny Stock” rules promulgated by the Securities and Exchange Commission. Under these rules, broker-dealers participating in transactions in these securities must first deliver a risk disclosure document which describes risks associated with these stocks, broker-dealers’ duties, customers’ rights and remedies, market and other information, and make suitability determinations approving the customers for these stock transactions based on financial situation, investment experience and objectives. Broker-dealers must also disclose these restrictions in writing, provide monthly account statements to customers, and obtain specific written consent of each customer. With these restrictions, the likely effect of designation as a low-priced stock is to decrease the willingness of broker-dealers to make a market for the stock, to decrease the liquidity of the stock and increase the transaction cost of sales and purchases of these stocks compared to other securities.

(B) HOLDERS

As of March 10, 2023, there were approximately 535 holders of the common stock on record with our transfer agent.

(C) DIVIDENDS

We have not previously paid any cash dividends on common stock and do not anticipate or contemplate paying dividends on common stock in the foreseeable future. Our present intention is to utilize all available funds to develop and expand our business. The only restrictions that limit the ability to pay dividends on common equity, or that are likely to do so in the future, are those restrictions imposed by law and those restrictions imposed under contractual obligation. Under Wyoming corporate law, no dividends or other distributions may be made which would render a company insolvent or reduce assets to less than the sum of liabilities plus the amount needed to satisfy outstanding liquidation preferences.

Any future determination to pay cash dividends will be at the discretion of our board of directors, and will be dependent upon our financial condition, results of operations, capital requirements and other factors as our board may deem relevant at that time.

(D) RECENT ISSUANCES OF UNREGISTERED SECURITIES

During the year ended December 31, 2022, pursuant to our offering under Regulation A+, we issued 40,100,000 shares of common stock in exchange for cash of $180,000, net of direct fees and commissions.

During the year ended December 31, 2022, we issued 30,105,936 shares of its common stock for services, with a fair value of $423,000.

During the year ended December 31, 2022, we issued a total of 100,000,000 shares of common stock and received cash of $1,440,000, net of direct costs (see Note 11 to the accompanying consolidated financial statements).

Subsequent issuances

Subsequent to our year end of December 31, 2022 and  pursuant to the Company’s Qualified  Regulation A Offering, we issued 176,599,998 shares of common stock in exchange for cash of $795,000, net of direct fees and commissions. As part of the offering, we also issued warrants to certain investors and placement agent to purchase 35,319,999 shares of common stock. The warrants are fully vested, exercisable at $0.02 per share and will expire in five years.

Subsequent to December 31, 2022, pursuant to our private placement under Rule 506(b) of Regulation D, we sold 78,000,000 warrants to purchase shares of common stock in exchange for cash of $18,000, net of direct fees and commissions. The warrants are fully vested, exercisable at $0.02 per share and will expire in five years.

All of the above offerings and sales, except the afore-mentioned shares issued pursuant to a conversion of convertible notes, were made in reliance upon the exemption from registration under Rule 506 of Regulation D promulgated under the Securities Act of 1933 and/or Section 4(2) of the Securities Act of 1933, based on the following: (a) the investors confirmed to us that they were “accredited investors,” as defined in Rule 501 of Regulation D promulgated under the Securities Act of 1933 and had such background, education and experience in financial and business matters as to be able to evaluate the merits and risks of an investment in the securities; (b) there was no public offering or general solicitation with respect to the offering; (c) the investors were provided with certain disclosure materials and all other information requested with respect to us ; (d) where applicable, the investors acknowledged that all securities being purchased were “restricted securities” for purposes of the Securities Act of 1933, and agreed to transfer such securities only in a transaction registered under the Securities Act of 1933 or exempt from registration under the Securities Act; and (e) where applicable, a legend was placed on the certificates representing each such security stating that it was restricted and could only be transferred if subsequent registered under the Securities Act of 1933 or transferred in a transaction exempt from registration under the Securities Act of 1933.

Issuer Purchases of Equity Securities

None.

ITEM 6. Selected Financial Data.

As a “smaller reporting company” as defined by Item 10 of Regulation S-K, we are not required to provide the information required by this Item.

ITEM 7. MANAGEMENT’S DISCUSSION AND ANALYSIS OF FINANCIAL CONDITION AND RESULTS OF OPERATIONS

Forward-Looking Statements

The following is management’s discussion and analysis (|MD&A”) of certain significant factors that have affected our financial position and operating results during the periods included in the accompanying financial statements, as well as information relating to the plans of our current management. This report includes forward-looking statements. Generally, the words “believes,” “anticipates,” “may,” “will,” “should,” “expect,” “intend,” “estimate,” “continue,” and similar expressions or the negative thereof or comparable terminology are intended to identify forward-looking statements. Such statements are subject to certain risks and uncertainties, including the matters set forth in this report or other reports or documents we file with the Securities and Exchange Commission from time to time, which could cause actual results or outcomes to differ materially from those projected. Undue reliance should not be placed on these forward-looking statements which speak only as of the date hereof. We undertake no obligation to update these forward-looking statements.

The following discussion and analysis should be read in conjunction with our financial statements and the related notes thereto and other financial information contained elsewhere in this Form 10-K.

Our MD&A is comprised of significant accounting estimates made in the normal course of its operations, overview of our business conditions, results of operations, liquidity and capital resources and contractual obligations. We did not have any off balance sheet arrangements as of December 31, 2021 or 2022.

The discussion and analysis of our financial condition and results of operations is based upon its financial statements, which have been prepared in accordance with generally accepted accounting principles generally accepted in the United States (or “GAAP”). The preparation of those financial statements requires us to make estimates and judgments that affect the reported amount of assets and liabilities at the date of its financial statements. Actual results may differ from these estimates under different assumptions or conditions.

Background

We are a software development and services company that offers a suite of integrated computer network security products using proprietary technology. Our ongoing strategy is developing and marketing our suite of network security products to the corporate, financial, healthcare, legal, government, technology, insurance, e-commerce and consumer sectors. We plan to continue to grow our business primarily through our expanding sales channel and internally generated sales, rather than by acquisitions. We hold a 49% interest in BlockSafe Technologies, Inc., and, as of April 2021, we hold a 100% interest in Cybersecurity Risk Solutions, LLC.

In March 2020, the World Health Organization declared the spread of COVID-19 a pandemic. This outbreak continues to spread throughout the U.S. and around the world. As a result, authorities continue to implement numerous measures to try to contain the virus, including restrictions on travel, quarantines, shelter-in-place orders, business restrictions and complete shutdowns. We are not considered an “essential business” due to the industries and customers we serve. As of, and subsequent to, December 31, 2022, we have been following the recommendations of the CDC and state/local health authorities to minimize exposure risk for our team members during the pandemic, including the temporary closure of our corporate office and having our team members work remotely. During the second quarter of 2021, we reopened our corporate office while continuing to adhere to the guidelines issued by health authorities. Many customers and vendors have transitioned to electronic submission of invoices and payments. The COVID-19 pandemic has resulted in longer response times from potential new customers and certain existing customers. We cannot anticipate the effect that the impairments caused by the COVID-19 pandemic will have on our fiscal 2023 results, or the effectiveness and distributions of vaccines, boosters, and their distribution, changes to mask mandate policies and to transitioning from a pandemic to an endemic. The pandemic has significantly impacted the economic conditions both in the United States and worldwide, with accelerated effects through the date of this Annual Report, as federal, state and local governments react to the public health crisis, creating significant uncertainties in both the worldwide and the United States economies. The situation is rapidly changing, including the onset of the ongoing subsequent waves of the virus caused by the possibility of various variants over time, and additional impacts to our business may arise that we are not aware of currently. We cannot predict whether, when or the manner in which, the conditions surrounding COVID-19 will change including the timing of lifting any restrictions or office closure requirements. We will continue to evaluate the nature and extent of COVID-19’s impact to our business, consolidated results of operations, financial condition and liquidity, and our results presented herein are not necessarily indicative of the results to be expected for future periods in 2023, or beyond.

During the year ended December 31, 2021, we believe the COVID-19 pandemic did impact our operating results as sales to customers were down 7% as compared from the year ended December 31, 2020. However, we have not observed any impairments of our assets or a significant change in the fair value of our assets due to the COVID-19 pandemic. At this time, it is not possible for us to predict the duration or magnitude of the adverse results of the outbreak and its effects on our business or results of operations, financial condition, or liquidity.

We have been following the recommendations of health authorities to minimize exposure risk for our team members, including the temporary closure of our corporate office and having team members work remotely. Most customers and vendors have transitioned to electronic submission of invoices and payments.

Management believes that cyber security is a growing requirement as the pandemic continues, more people are working remotely as well as using digital forms on a regular basis. Consequently, the market demand, in our estimation, is increasing. However, we are also experiencing the impact of the ongoing pandemic. Currently our management is not working from our office location and impedes our ability to take full advantage of the increasing market demand. Many of our current clients have experienced a dramatic slowdown in their business, limiting their ability to have the resources to pay for our services. We still generate revenues and we anticipate, but cannot guarantee, we will have the resources to advance our secure video conferencing tool, Zerify Meet™ and Zerify Defender™, that provides authentication and encryption (using our existing products), for which we believe will have a great interest in the market. During the year ended December 31, 2022, we earned revenues of $10,000 from Zerify Meet™ and Zerify Defender™ and overall revenues of $103,000.

Our executive office is located at 1090 King Georges Post Road, Suite 603, Edison, NJ 08837. Our telephone number is (732) 661-9641. At December 31, 2021, we had 10 employees. Our website is www.zerify.com (formerly www.strikeforcetech.com) (we are not including the information contained in our website as part of, nor should the information be relied upon or incorporated by reference into, this report on Form 10-K/A).

Results of Operations

FOR THE YEAR ENDED DECEMBER 31, 2022 COMPARED TO THE YEAR ENDED DECEMBER 31, 2021

Revenues for the year ended December 31, 2022 were $103,000 compared to $193,000 for the year ended December 31, 2021, a decrease of $90,000 or 47%. The decrease in revenues was primarily due to a decrease in revenues relating to our ProtectID®, GuardedID® and MobileTrust® and Zerify™ Meet products, as affected by impairments related to the economic consequences of the COVID-19 pandemic. Revenues are derived from software and services.

Cost of revenues for the year ended December 31, 2022 was $34,000 compared to $27,000 for the year ended December 31, 2021, an increase of $7,000 or 26%. The increase in cost of revenues was primarily due to an increase in the fees related to our product offerings. Cost of revenues are fees and key fobs related to our revenues, and as a percentage of total revenues for the year ended December 31, 2022 was 33.0% compared to 14.0% for the year ended December 31, 2021.

Compensation, professional fees, and selling, general and administrative (collectively, “SGA”) expenses for the year ended December 31, 2022 were $7,711,000 compared to $9,448,000 for the year ended December 31, 2021, a decrease of $1,737,000. The decrease was due primarily to a decrease in stock-based compensation, offset by an increase in compensation/benefits expenses and professional fees. SG&A expenses consist primarily of salaries, benefits and overhead costs for executive and administrative personnel, insurance, fees for professional services, including consulting, legal, and accounting fees, plus travel costs and non-cash stock compensation expense for the issuance of stock options to employees and other general corporate expenses.

Research and development expenses for the year ended December 31, 2022 were $580,000 compared to $566,000 for the year ended December 31, 2021, an increase of $14,000 or 2%. The increase was primarily due to an increase in salaries and benefits of the personnel conducting research and development. The salaries, benefits and overhead costs of personnel conducting research and development of our software products primarily comprises our research and development expenses.

For the year ended December 31, 2022, other expense was $607,000 as compared to other expense of $7,397,000 for the year ended December 31, 2021, a decrease in other expense of $6,790,000 or 91%. The decrease was primarily due to decreases in financing expense, interest expense, debt discount amortization, the change in the fair value of derivative liabilities and the loss on debt extinguishment.

Our net loss for the year ended December 31, 2022 was $8,829,000 compared to $17,245,000 for year ended December 31, 2021, a decrease of $8,416,000, or 49%. The decrease was primarily due to decreases in stock-based compensation, financing expense, interest expense, debt discount amortization, the change in the fair value of derivative liabilities and the loss on debt extinguishment, offset by increased compensation/benefits expenses and professional fees.   

Liquidity and Capital Resources

Our total current assets at December 31, 2022 were $212,000, as compared with $2,121,000 in total current assets at December 31, 2021, which included cash of $2,084,000. Additionally, we had a stockholders’ deficit in the amount of $14,855,000 at December 31, 2022 compared to a stockholders’ deficit of $11,589,000 at December 31, 2021. We have historically incurred recurring losses and have financed our operations through loans, principally from affiliated parties such as our directors, and from the proceeds of debt and equity financing. We financed our operations during the year ended December 31, 2022 primarily from the cash balance from the year ended December 31, 2021 and from proceeds of equity instruments and notes payable issued during fiscal 2022.

On August 12, 2022, our registration statement on Form S-1 was declared effective by the Securities and Exchange Commission. This registration statement registered 50,000,000 shares with underlying common stock purchase warrants. The common stock purchase warrants were exercised contemporaneously with the execution of exercise agreements. We received aggregate gross proceeds of $500,000 from the cash exercise of the common stock purchase warrants by the exercising holders and such holders, as a condition to exercising their common stock purchase warrants, were issued an aggregate of 50,000,000 shares of Common Stock and, as a condition to exercising the common stock purchase warrants early,  new common stock purchase warrants were issued to purchase an aggregate additional 50,000,000 shares of Common Stock.

Subsequent to December 31, 2022, pursuant to the Company’s Qualified Regulation A Offering, we issued 176,599,998 shares of common stock in exchange for cash of $795,000, net of direct fees and commissions. As part of the offering, we also issued warrants to certain investors and placement agent to purchase 35,319,999 shares of common stock. The warrants are fully vested, exercisable at $0.02 per share and will expire in five years.

Subsequent to December 31, 2022, pursuant to our private placement under Rule 506(b) of Regulation D, we sold 78,000,000 warrants to purchase shares of common stock in exchange for cash of $18,000, net of direct fees and commissions. The warrants are fully vested, exercisable at $0.02 per share and will expire in five years.

Going Concern

We have yet to establish any history of profitable operations. During the year ended December 31, 2022, we incurred a net loss of $8,829,000 and used cash in operating activities of $4,258,000, and at December 31, 2022, we had a stockholders’ deficit of $14,855,000. In addition, we are in default on notes payable and convertible notes payable in the aggregate amount of $2,825,000. These factors raise substantial doubt about our ability to continue as a going concern within one year after the date the financial statements are issued. Our financial statements do not include any adjustments that might result from the outcome of this uncertainty should we be unable to continue as a going concern.

At December 31, 2022, we had cash on hand in the amount of $192,000. Subsequent to December 31, 2022, we received proceeds of $813,000 on the sale of common shares and warrants (see Note 15 to the accompanying consolidated financial statements). We believe we have enough cash to sustain operations through June 30, 2023. Our ability to continue as a going concern is dependent upon its ability to continue to implement our  business plan. Currently, management is attempting to increase revenues by selling through a channel of distributors, value added resellers, strategic partners and original equipment manufacturers. While we believe in the viability of its strategy to increase revenues, there can be no assurances to that effect. Our ability to continue as a going concern is dependent upon its ability to increase its customer base and realize increased revenues. No assurance can be given that any future financing, if needed, will be available or, if available, that it will be on terms that are satisfactory to us.    Even if we are able to obtain additional financing, if needed, it may contain undue restrictions on our operations, in the case of debt financing, or cause substantial dilution for our stockholders, in the case of equity financing.

Changes in Authorized Shares and Forward Split of BlockSafe Shares

In April 2020, an increase of our  authorized common stock shares  from twelve billion (12,000,000,000) to seventeen billion (17,000,000,000), $0.0001 par value, was ratified, effective upon the filing of an amendment to our Certificate of Incorporation with the Wyoming Secretary of State. The amendment was adopted in April 2020.

In April 2020, our Board of Directors and the holders of a majority of the voting power approved a resolution to effectuate a 500:1 Reverse Stock Split resolution for a reduction in the authorized common stock from seventeen billion (17,000,000,000) to fourteen billion (14,000,000,000), $0.0001 par value. The amendment was adopted in June 2020.

In December 2020, a decrease of the authorized shares of our  common stock from fourteen billion (14,000,000,000) to four billion (4,000,000,000), $0.0001 par value, was ratified, effective upon the filing of an amendment to our Certificate of Incorporation with the Wyoming Secretary of State. The amendment was adopted in December 2020.

Off-Balance Sheet Arrangements

We do not have any off-balance sheet arrangements that are reasonably likely to have a current or future effect on our financial condition, revenues, result of operations, liquidity or capital expenditures.

Critical Accounting Policies

Use of Estimates

The preparation of financial statements in conformity with generally accepted accounting principles requires management to make estimates and assumptions that affect the reported amounts of assets and liabilities and disclosure of contingent assets and liabilities at the date of the financial statements and the reported amounts of revenues and expenses during the reporting period. Significant estimates include those related to accounting for financing obligations, assumptions used in valuing stock instruments issued for services, assumptions used in valuing derivative liabilities, the valuation allowance for deferred tax assets, and the accrual of potential liabilities. Actual results could differ from those estimates.

Revenue Recognition

The Company follows the guidance of Accounting Standards Codification (ASC) 606, Revenue from Contracts with Customers. ASC 606 creates a five-step model that requires entities to exercise judgment when considering the terms of contracts, which includes (1) identifying the contracts or agreements with a customer, (2) identifying our performance obligations in the contract or agreement, (3) determining the transaction price, (4) allocating the transaction price to the separate performance obligations, and (5) recognizing revenue as each performance obligation is satisfied. The Company only applies the five-step model to contracts when it is probable that the Company will collect the consideration it is entitled to in exchange for the services it transfers to its clients.

The Company’s revenue consists of revenue from sales and support of our software products. Revenue primarily consists of sales of software licenses and subscriptions of our ProtectID®, GuardedID®, MobileTrust®, Zerify Meet™ and Zerify Defender™ products. We recognize revenue from these arrangements ratably over the contractual service period. For service contracts, the Company’s performance obligations are satisfied, and the related revenue is recognized, as services are rendered.

The Company offers no discounts, rebates, rights of return, or other allowances to clients which would result in the establishment of reserves against service revenue. Additionally, to date, the Company has not incurred incremental costs in obtaining a client contract.

Cost of revenue includes direct costs and fees related to the sale of our products.

Share-Based Payments

The Company periodically issues stock options, warrants, and shares of common stock as share-based compensation to employees and non-employees in non-capital raising transactions for services and for financing costs. The Company accounts for such grants issued and vesting based on FASB ASC 718, Compensation – Stock Compensation (Topic 718) whereby the value of the award is measured on the date of grant and recognized as compensation expense on the straight-line basis over the vesting period. The Company recognizes the fair value of stock-based compensation within its Statements of Operations with classification depending on the nature of the services rendered.

Derivative Financial Instruments

The Company evaluates its financial instruments to determine if such instruments are derivatives or contain features that qualify as embedded derivatives. For derivative financial instruments that are accounted for as liabilities, the derivative instrument is initially recorded at its fair value and is then re-valued at each reporting date, with changes in the fair value reported in the statements of operations. The Company evaluates embedded conversion features within its convertible debt to determine whether the embedded conversion features should be bifurcated from the host instrument and accounted for as a derivative. The fair value of the embedded derivatives are determined using the trinomial/binomial valuation method at inception and on subsequent valuation dates. The classification of derivative instruments, including whether such instruments should be recorded as liabilities or as equity, is evaluated at the end of each reporting period.

Recently Issued Accounting Pronouncements

Refer to Note 1 in the accompanying consolidated financial statements.

Additional Information

You are advised to read this Form 10-K in conjunction with other reports and documents that we file from time to time with the SEC. In particular, please read our Quarterly Reports on Form 10-Q, Annual Reports on Form 10-K, and Current Reports on Form 8-K that we file from time to time. You may obtain copies of these reports directly from us or from the SEC at the SEC’s Public Reference Room at 100 F. Street, N.E. Washington, D.C. 20549, and you may obtain information about obtaining access to the Reference Room by calling the SEC at 1-800-SEC-0330. In addition, the SEC maintains information for electronic filers at its website http://www.sec.gov.

ITEM 7A. QUANTITATIVE AND QUALITATIVE DISCLOSURES ABOUT MARKET RISK

As a smaller reporting company, we are not required to provide the information required by this Item.

ITEM 8. FINANCIAL STATEMENTS AND SUPPLEMENTARY DATA

Please see pages F-1 through F-25.

Zerify, Inc.

Index to Financial Statements

REPORT OF INDEPENDENT REGISTERED PUBLIC ACCOUNTING FIRM

The Stockholders and Board of Directors of

Zerify, Inc.

Edison, NJ 

Opinion on the Financial Statements

We have audited the accompanying consolidated balance sheets of Zerify, Inc. (the “Company”) as of December 31, 2022 and 2021, the related consolidated statements of operations, changes in stockholders’ deficit, and cash flows for the years then ended, and the related notes (collectively referred to as the “financial statements”).  In our opinion, the consolidated financial statements present fairly, in all material respects, the financial position of the Company as of December 31, 2022 and 2021, and the results of its operations and its cash flows for the years then ended, in conformity with accounting principles generally accepted in the United States of America.

Going Concern

The accompanying financial statements have been prepared assuming that the Company will continue as a going concern.  As discussed in Note 1 to the financial statements, during the year ended December 31, 2022, the Company incurred a net loss and utilized cash in operations, and at December 31, 2022, had a stockholders' deficit.  In addition, $2,867,000 of notes payable were in default as of that date. These conditions raise substantial doubt about the Company’s ability to continue as a going concern.  Management’s plans in regards to these matters are also described in Note 1.  The financial statements do not include any adjustments that might result from the outcome of this uncertainty. 

Basis for Opinion

These financial statements are the responsibility of the Company’s management.  Our responsibility is to express an opinion on the Company’s financial statements based on our audits.  We are a public accounting firm registered with the Public Company Accounting Oversight Board (United States) (“PCAOB”) and are required to be independent with respect to the Company in accordance with the U.S. federal securities laws and the applicable rules and regulations of the Securities and Exchange Commission and the PCAOB.

We conducted our audits in accordance with the standards of the PCAOB.  Those standards require that we plan and perform the audits to obtain reasonable assurance about whether the financial statements are free of material misstatement, whether due to error or fraud.  The Company is not required to have, nor were we engaged to perform, an audit of its internal control over financial reporting.  As part of our audits we are required to obtain an understanding of internal control over financial reporting but not for the purpose of expressing an opinion on the effectiveness of the Company’s internal control over financial reporting.  Accordingly, we express no such opinion.

Our audits included performing procedures to assess the risks of material misstatement of the financial statements, whether due to error or fraud, and performing procedures that respond to those risks.  Such procedures included examining, on a test basis, evidence regarding the amounts and disclosures in the financial statements.  Our audits also included evaluating the accounting principles used and significant estimates made by management, as well as evaluating the overall presentation of the financial statements.  We believe that our audits provide a reasonable basis for our opinion.

Critical Audit Matter

The critical audit matter communicated below is a matter arising from the current period audit of the financial statements that was communicated or required to be communicated to the audit committee and that (1) relates to accounts or disclosures that are material to the financial statements and (2) involved especially challenging, subjective, or complex judgments. The communication of critical audit matters does not alter in any way our opinion on the consolidated financial statements, taken as a whole, and we are not, by communicating the critical audit matters below, providing separate opinions on the critical audit matters or on the accounts or disclosures to which they relate.

As discussed in Notes 11 and 12 to the consolidated financial statements, the Company issues stock options and stock warrants to certain officers, employees and consultants as compensation (the “Equity Awards”). The fair values of these Equity Awards were determined as of the grant date using a Black-Scholes option-pricing model (the “Black-Scholes Model”). The selection of the valuation methodology and assumptions utilized in the Black-Scholes Model are based, in part, upon assumptions for which management is required to use judgment, particularly the risk-free interest rate, volatility, and dividend yield.

We identified the valuation of the Equity Awards as a critical audit matter because of the significant judgments made by management to determine the grant date fair values. This required a high degree of auditor judgment and an increased expenditure of effort when performing audit procedures to evaluate the reasonableness of management’s valuation methodology and related assumptions, including the risk-free interest rate, volatility, and dividend yield.

Our audit procedures related to the determination of the fair values of the Equity Awards, including the valuation methodology and related assumptions such as the risk-free interest rate, volatility, and dividend yield, consisted of the following, among others: 

We have served as the Company’s auditor since 2015. 

Weinberg & Company, P.A

Los Angeles, California

April 14, 2023

ZERIFY, INC.

CONSOLIDATED BALANCE SHEET

See accompanying notes to the consolidated financial statements.

ZERIFY, INC.

 CONSOLIDATED STATEMENTS OF OPERATIONS

FOR THE YEARS ENDED DECEMBER 31, 2022 AND 2021

See accompanying notes to the consolidated financial statements. 

ZERIFY, INC.

CONSOLIDATED STATEMENTS OF CHANGES IN STOCKHOLDERS’ DEFICIT

FOR THE YEARS ENDED DECEMBER 31, 2022 AND 2021

See accompanying notes to the consolidated financial statements.

ZERIFY, INC.

CONSOLIDATED STATEMENTS OF CASH FLOWS

FOR THE YEARS ENDED DECEMBER 31, 2022 AND 2021