Tracesmart, a leading provider of fraud prevention and anti-money laundering data services, are to receive and integrate into their system what is generally known in the industry as the ‘gap data’. Following a review by The Identity and Passport Service, the list of deaths registered in the UK from January 2007 to September 2008 has been made available to licence holders under the Disclosure of Death Registration Information (DDRI).
The DDRI scheme was originally launched in January 2008 to provide licensees with a weekly feed of electronic files of deaths registered in the UK. The data can only be accessed by approved organisations and for reasons prescribed by law; its purpose is prevention, detection, investigation and prosecution of offences. Tracesmart were one of the first companies to receive the data and continues to be one of a limited number of companies to be given access to the weekly update and now the newly released records.
The information along with their existing mortality data will enhance and further help Tracesmart’s customers in their battle to fight fraud and in particular, prevent impersonation of the deceased (IOD) fraud – a rapidly increasing crime within the financial sector.
Founded in 1999, Tracesmart has become one of the UK’s leading data specialists and utilise Death Registration Information within their electronic identity verification, fraud investigation and mortality screening services. Commenting on their recent acquisition, Michael Trezise, Tracesmart’s Managing Director stated: “IOD fraud can affect a wealth of businesses and organisations; we remain committed to offering the highest possible level of service and quality of data to protect our customers against this type of fraud. Unfortunately, fraud is on the increase and mortality data is vital to counter-act the level of deception perpetrated by criminals within the financial industries.”
