Resolve a Watchlist Match

This article outlines best practices for reviewing and resolving a Watchlist match.

How to resolve a Watchlist match

When a consumer's identity details match an individual on Watchlist, Socure recommends the following best practices to accurately resolve the issue:

1. Review the consumer's identity details against the Watchlist match

Compare the information returned by Watchlist with the consumer-provided version to identify discrepancies about the name, date of birth, gender, location, address history, and image.

2. Consider additional factors

In some cases, additional factors may be required to confirm or clarify the consumer's identity. For example, if the consumer's first and last name match the watchlist but the middle name does not, you may need to confirm the consumer's middle name through due diligence.

Use following examples as a reference for accepting or reviewing consumers with Watchlist Screening:

Does the consumer’s name match a name on the Watchlist?

PII Element	Example	Recommendation
Full name	Consumer: Chen Wei Watchlist: Muhammad Ali	Accept: The consumer's full name does not match the name on the Watchlist.
Full name	Consumer: Kim Hye-rin Watchlist: Kim Hye-sun	Accept: The consumer's middle name does not match the name on the Watchlist.
Full name	Consumer: Pavel Tanaka Watchlist: Paolo Tanaka	Review: Because Pavel and Paulo are the same name in different languages, it's possible that the consumer may have used a nickname that is different from the name on the Watchlist.
Full name	Consumer: Muhammad Mahmoud Watchlist: Mohd Ali Hassan	Review: The consumer's last name may be Hassan, but this can only be confirmed through due diligence.
Full name	Consumer: Ali Mohd Hassan Watchlist: Muhammad Hassan Mahmoud	Review: The consumer may have used their middle name as their first name, but this can only be confirmed through due diligence.
Full name	Consumer: Fu Zhi Watchlist: Zhi Fu	Review: The consumer may have used their last name as their first name, but this can only be confirmed through due diligence.
Full name	Consumer: Jose Rivera Watchlist: Jose Rivera-Ramirez	Review: The consumer may have used part of their last name, but this can only be confirmed through due diligence if the consumer has never used any alternate names, including the one from the watchlist.

Does the consumer's date of birth (DOB) match a date of birth on the Watchlist?

PII Element	Example	Recommendation
DOB	Consumer: 1985/9/5 Watchlist: 1985/10/5	Accept: The consumer's month of birth does not match the DOB on the Watchlist.
DOB	Consumer: 1995/12/25 Watchlist: 1994	Accept: The consumer's year of birth does not match the year of birth on the Watchlist.
DOB	Consumer: 1997/06/07 Watchlist: 1997/02	Accept: The consumer's date and month of birth do not match the information returned by the Watchlist.
DOB	Consumer: 1998/7/15 Watchlist: 1998/7	Review: The consumer's date of birth may match the individual on the Watchlist, but this can only be confirmed through due diligence.
DOB	Consumer: 08/15/1990 Watchlist: 1988 - 1991	Review: The consumer's date and month of birth may match the individual on the Watchlist, but this can only be confirmed through due diligence.

Does the consumer live in the same location as the individual on the Watchlist?

PII Element	Example	Recommendation
Location	Consumer: Washington DC Watchlist: Phoenix, AZConsumer: Houston, TX Watchlist: UK Ambassador	Review: In the first example, the consumer with a Washington DC address may be a federal-level PEP who is a member of the U.S. Congress from Arizona. In the second example, the consumer may be an ambassador from another country working in the United States. Location can be used as a single factor for state and local-level PEPs, as they must reside in the town or state near their work location.

Does the consumer's address history match the information returned by the Watchlist?

PII Element	Example	Recommendation
Address history	Consumer: Resided in the state of Alaska his entire life Watchlist: Is a sanctioned individual from Germany or is PEP from New York	Accept: The consumer's address history does not indicate that they have lived in the locations returned by the Watchlist.

Does the consumer’s picture match the individual on the Watchlist?

PII Element	Example	Recommendation
Image	The government-issued photo identification document uploaded by the consumer differs from the picture returned by the Watchlist.	Accept: The consumer’s government-issued photo identification document does not match the individual on the Watchlist.

3. Determine if the consumer's information matches the Watchlist

Based on your review in step 1 and step 2, determine if the consumer's information matches the individual on the watchlist. If the consumer does not match the individual on the watchlist, you can proceed with the onboarding process. Otherwise, continue with further reviews.

4. Review the match further

If the consumer's information matches the individual on the watchlist, extensive research through external sources may be required to determine if your consumer is the same individual on the watchlist.

5. Leverage government agencies

Engage with the government agency or organization that maintains the watchlist to obtain more information or context about the individual on the watchlist that may help to resolve the match.

6. Make a decision

Based on your thorough review and due diligent research, decide on whether or not to accept the consumer. If you accept the consumer, document your decision and its rationale. Otherwise, follow the appropriate procedures for rejecting a consumer.

Bulk closing cases

Compliance Officers and Compliance Supervisors can close watchlist cases in bulk by following the steps below:

Go to the Batch Jobs page, then click the Plus (+) icon on the Account menu and select Watchlist Case Closure.
Drag and drop the .csv file or browse to select the file to upload. The file must include the following columns:
- caseId: The unique identifier for the case.
- transactionId: The referenceId for the transactions you want to close.
- comment: Additional context about the case closure. This column is optional.
Click Upload to initiate the batch job.
When the batch job is complete, go to the Batch Jobs page, then click the Download link to download a report that contains the results of the bulk closure.

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Note:
If both caseId and transactionId are present in the same row, only the caseId will be processed.

Updated 3 months ago