Fair, Isaac Introduces Credit Bureau-Based Fraud Model For Application Screening
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Fair, Isaac and Company, Inc. and Trans Union of Canada have collaborated to develop RAVEN, a powerful fraud detection system to help Canadian credit grantors detect fraud at the earliest possible point of prevention -- during application screening.

Developed by Fair, Isaac using an innovative fusion model, RAVEN offers greatly refined application fraud detection to help Canadian companies reduce fraud losses and the costs associated with fraud investigations. RAVEN will be available this summer through Trans Union of Canada.

RAVEN was developed on a unique set of data -- Trans Union of Canada credit bureau data, Trans Union of Canada's HAWK Fraud Detection System data, and Canadian client application data. Fair, Isaac fused the strengths of multiple modeling technologies and techniques -- its ADVISE data mining tool and INFORMPLUS along with neural networks -- to optimize RAVEN's precision in recognizing application fraud.

"By leveraging Fair, Isaac's decades of modeling expertise, as well as multiple predictive technologies, techniques, and data sources, we were able to develop Canada's first credit bureau-based application fraud score," said Sally Taylor-Shoff, director, Credit Bureau Risk Products, Fair, Isaac. " This fusion model is the latest addition to Fair, Isaac's family of fraud solutions."

RAVEN rank-orders the likelihood an application is fraudulent and focuses on identifying true-name fraud -- those cases of stolen identity. RAVEN also helps detect other cases of application fraud, such as attempts to create or embellish an identity.

By reducing manually intensive investigative efforts, RAVEN helps lower the credit grantor's application screening costs. Investigators can use RAVEN to hone in on the applications most likely to be fraudulent and more effectively queue them for the verification process. In addition, RAVEN minimizes those cases where good customers are targeted for fraud investigation. Credit grantors can process applications more efficiently with less disruption to customer service.

"RAVEN capitalizes on and complements current anti-fraud measures in Canada," said Sonja Schindeler, product development, Trans Union of Canada. "HAWK has helped credit grantors successfully identify fraud based on known fraud activity. RAVEN now offers an entirely new level of fraud prevention by detecting HAWK and non-HAWK patterns. Both are key to staying ahead of the fraudster."

Fair, Isaac provides data-driven decision-making solutions including data management, analytic tools, software and consulting to businesses in financial services, direct marketing, personal lines insurance, retail, and telecommunications. Headquartered in San Rafael, Calif., Fair, Isaac employs more than 1300 people in 16 offices worldwide. For the fiscal year ended September 30 1997, the company reported revenues of $199 million, a 28 percent increase over the prior year.

Trans Union of Canada is a division of Trans Union Corporation. The company provides a broad range of industries with products and services that include credit reports, risk scoring models, target marketing systems, pre-employment evaluation reports, skip tracing and search tools, customized lists, transaction services; products that service both equity and first mortgage lenders; as well as other information-based products. Trans Union also offers similar products through its international operations in Puerto Rico, the U.S. Virgin Islands, Canada, Italy, Mexico and South Africa. Offices have also recently opened in Chile, Kenya and Peru.

For more information, call Fair, Isaac at 800-999-2955