Name Screening

Name screening is part of the process of performing due diligence. The process (also known as “screening”) involves taking a name and searching it on a name-screening database. A name screening database is usually obtained from reputable risk and compliance companies on a subscription basis. Major players in the current market are:

• Thomson Reuters World-Check
• Dow Jones Factiva
• Lexis Nexis World Compliance

There are several outcomes after a search is conducted on a name:

No hit: The search returned 0 results.

False positive hit: The search returned results with similar names to the searched name, but it can be determined by other factors such as date of birth, gender, citizenship, etc., that the profiles are not the same person.

Positive hit: The search returned a result that can be conclusively verified that it is the same person.

False negative hit: The search returned 0 results, but other information suggests that the screening should yield results. This could mean several things:

1. The name screening database is not updated with the latest information.
2. The name screening database has the information, but the search algorithm (fuzzy logic) is not sensitive enough to return appropriate results.