Hi @sbw
The goal of identifying is to prove that the person who is posting on Steemit is a real person.I don't need to verify anything else like who you are in real life and stuff. He could call himself "rgeddes " and hold a picture that reads "Steemit" and the date, and that will do just fine.
EXAMPLE:
He is successfully verified on Steemit.
Source: https://steemit.com/introducemyself/@rgeddes/my-steemit-verify-post