Here we are in March, 2009, four months after the Red Flags Rules deadline OR two months until the Red Flags deadline…depending on your glass-half-full / glass-half-empty view of the world. I can say with confidence that at this point in time, the Identity Theft Red Flags 'discussion' with our clients and the market at large continues in full earnest. That said, however, the nature of our discussions has changed substantially.
A few months ago, the needs expressed by the market centered on education around the Red Flags Rule,Red Flag compliance and it's applicability to various markets and account types. I find that the majority of my daily conversations on the subject now regard efficiencies in process and cost combined with effectiveness and customer experience. Most of our clients 'get' what they need to be doing such as identifying, detecting and responding to Red Flag conditions. Where we are still working closely with our clients is in how they can optimize their policies and procedures to ensure that the majority of Red Flag conditions are detected and reconciled in singular automated steps. As I've said in previous blogs, detecting these conditions is the easy part. It's how you reconcile (a.k.a. respond to) those conditions that makes the difference in your bottom line. As May 1 approaches, now is a great time to be monitoring each step in your process in an effort to identify those areas that may still have room for efficiency gains and improved customer experience.