The Verification
Lexicon

Asset verification is the process of confirming that a borrower actually holds the funds needed for a down payment, closing costs, and required reserves, and that those funds are legitimately theirs.

Bank account verification confirms that a bank account exists, is open, and belongs to the person claiming it, before a lender or business moves money to or from it.

Bust-out fraud is a long-game scheme in which a fraudster, using a synthetic identity or their own, builds a trustworthy credit profile over months or years, then draws every available credit line at once and disappears.

A Customer Identification Program (CIP) is the written identity verification program every US bank must maintain under Section 326 of the USA PATRIOT Act (31 CFR 1020.220).

A de novo bank is a newly chartered bank started from scratch rather than acquired or converted from an existing charter.

eCBSV (electronic Consent Based Social Security Number Verification) is a Social Security Administration service that lets permitted entities verify, in real time and with the consumer’s consent, whether a name, SSN, and date of birth combination matches SSA records.

First-party fraud, sometimes called first-party abuse, is fraud committed by a person using their own, real identity while misrepresenting facts or intent for financial gain: inflating income on a loan application, disputing legitimate charges, or taking credit with no intention to repay.

Income verification is how a lender confirms that an applicant’s stated earnings are real, stable, and likely to continue.

New account fraud (also called account opening fraud) is the opening of a deposit or credit account using a stolen identity, a synthetic identity, or the fraudster’s own identity with intent to defraud: money mule accounts, first-deposit check fraud, or sign-up bonus abuse.

Synthetic identity fraud is the creation of a fictitious person by combining real personally identifiable information, most often a legitimate Social Security number, with a fabricated name, date of birth, or address.

A verification of deposit (VOD) is a lender’s confirmation, obtained directly from a borrower’s bank, that the accounts and balances listed on a loan application actually exist.

A verification of employment (VOE) is a lender’s confirmation that a borrower works where the application says they work, in the role and at the income stated.

Verification of income and assets (often VOI and VOA) is the combined process of confirming what a borrower earns and what they hold.

A verification of mortgage (VOM) is a report from a borrower’s current mortgage servicer documenting the loan’s payment history, balance, and standing.