“Adverse media screening isn’t just about finding the bad; it’s about protecting the good.”
Jane Smith, Risk Management Specialist: Doesn’t complying with too many regulatory requirements seem too complex and complicated for the organization? This is because, in following AML regulations, you have to leave no stone unturned.
Why is it? Leaving any loopholes for criminals to do money laundering or financial crimes can frustrate businesses, and they may face millions of dollars in fines and penalties.
That is why you need to apply AML checks, monitoring, and screening processes to ensure that every transaction follows legalities.
With dozens of user Background screening processes in place, today we will discuss Adverse media checklists and screening.
If we define the global adverse media in simplest terms, it is the databases of those people whose stories have been covered by any well reputed news channels or some negative news are being circulated on the other media platforms. And screening against such databases in well known as the global adverse media screening.
With the emergence of social media platforms, negative news flow without authentic sources is damaging many in the town.
This blog writing will help you understand the benefits of adverse media screening for different sorts of businesses.
Why You Can’t Ignore Adverse Media Screening Solution?
Since the global trade system has become vital for product movements across borders, financial institutions also see it as an opportunity to attract new customers from different countries through business transactions.
However, with higher chances of getting new high-profile customers, they also carry the risk of financial crimes. The higher rate of transactions makes it quite difficult for organizations to identify red flags.
Regulatory bodies like OFAC and FATF also stress the need for media screening for businesses.
4 Best Practices for Adverse Media Screening
Conducting adverse media list screening in the best and most protective ways is crucial for organizations. The information available over the Internet, including social media, could be fake or biased by writers or editors.
So, for businesses, first, it is important to choose authentic Adverse media screening tools like the one AML Watcher provides. Then, it is important to identify the risks that could ultimately damage your business reputation if they go undetected.
So here are the best practices for conducting adverse media screening that decrease the chances of false negatives and positives and enhance the Organization’s compliance efforts in fighting against money laundering and other crimes.
when and who to Screen
Do all the individuals and businesses pose the same risk? Not. Some individuals pose more risks than others. Knowing that not every person’s risk profile is the same, how could you screen them under a single strategy?
Therefore you need to understand which customer poses the higher riks, for example if you are onboarding a person and see the person included in the PEP list 1, that individual needs to be scrutinized on higher priority because of the person’s vulnerability to pose threats.
For example, you cannot screen every individual 24/7. So, what should organizations do? They must prioritize high-risk companies and individuals and screen them often, while companies with lower risk must be screened quarterly, twice a year, or annually. Organizations can also customize the monitoring flow by looking at the risks and unusual activity levels.
Use a Technologically advanced Media Screening tool
Screening manually against adverse media isn’t possible in this fast-evolving era of technology; manual screening also increases the chances of false positives and negatives.
Therefore, companies must implement advanced and automated adverse media screening tools like the one integrated with the AI and ML algorithms within their business operations to avoid any delays.
Integrate with Existing Compliance Program
Want to make your compliance program more effective and efficient?
To achieve this, you first need to establish your own internal compliance program, which must be based on the recommendations of regulatory bodies. Then, you should incorporate the system that provides your adverse media screening services. Integrating adverse media screening systems with existing compliance programs will definitely enhance the efficiency of any organization’s compliance program.
What benefits will the organization get? Integrating it with your existing system will provide a holistic view of potential risks and enhance the overall effectiveness of your risk management strategy.
Ensure Ongoing Monitoring
The threat of being exposed to financial crimes for business always remains. If the risk and its consequences do not fade away, how would a one-time screening help?
Therefore, organizations must make sure they continuously monitor and screen their customers, clients, and parters against all the sanctions list to mitigate the risk effectively. What’s next?
As highlighted in the earlier part of the blog, regulatory bodies obliged the organization to implement an adverse screening process in its customer due diligence process. Businesses can’t ignore such recommendations. Having robust and advanced adverse media screening tools can help you avoid fines or penalties.
AML watchers’ adverse media services are robust AI-integrated, which not only rely on information published on the Internet but also use human expertise to check the authenticity of the news and the people involved in it to verify the risk one can pose.
Implement an AML watcher media screening solution into your business to make your compliance program more efficient and reliable.
