METHOD AND SYSTEM FOR UNIQUELY IDENTIFYING A PERSON TO THE EXCLUSION OF ALL OTHERS

• US 20100281020A1
• Filed: 01/09/2009
• Published: 11/04/2010
• Est. Priority Date: 01/11/2008
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Kroll Government Solutions LLC
• Original Assignee: Verus Financial LLC
• Inventors: Drubner, Jeffrey M.
• Granted Patent: US 8,306,970 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 707/722
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 16/245 Query processing
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 30/08 Auctions

Abstract

Methods, program products, computer program products and systems for uniquely identifying an individual within a population to the exclusion of all others within the population by comparing data from unique data sources based on the name of the individual for providing a collection of preliminary suspects. An individual search service provider is then searched for additional data relating to the collection of preliminary suspects to locate any potential matches, which are reconciled with data from the unique data sources to locate at least a portion of a unique identifier that may be associated with the individual. The potential matches and portion of the unique identifier are compared with other data records within the individual search data source for locating a complete unique identifier that may be associated with the individual, followed by determining whether or not this complete unique identifier uniquely identifies the individual.

Claims

1. A method for positively identifying an individual comprising:

providing the name of an individual to be uniquely identified within a population to the exclusion of all others within said population;

providing at least two different and unique sources of data that contain data pertaining to said population;

providing access to at least one individual search data source;

comparing data from said at least two different and unique sources of data against each other based on said name of said individual to provide a collection of preliminary suspects;

searching said at least one individual search data source for additional data relating to said collection of preliminary suspects for locating at least one potential match;

verifying and validating said at least one potential match;

reconciling said at least one potential match with data from at least one of said different and unique data sources for locating at least a portion of a unique identifier that may be associated with said individual that is to be uniquely identified;

comparing said at least one potential match and said at least portion of the unique identifier with other data records within said at least one individual search data source for locating a complete unique identifier that may be associated with said individual that is to be uniquely identified; and

determining whether said complete unique identifier uniquely identifies said individual to the exclusion of all others within said population.

2. The method according to claim 1 wherein the step of providing at least two different and unique sources of data that contain data pertaining to a population of biological persons includes the steps:

retrieving data from the at least two different and unique data sources; and

normalizing the retrieved data into a standardized and common format.

3. The method according to claim 2 further comprising the step of performing a data scrubbing operation on the normalized data to provide scrubbed, normalized data.

4. The method according to claim 3 further comprising the step of validating the scrubbed, normalized data.

5. The method according to claim 4 further comprising the step of storing the validated data.

6. The method according to claim 1 wherein the step of providing at least two different and unique sources of data includes the step of updating the data in said at least two different and unique sources of data.

7. The method according to claim 1 wherein the step of comparing the at least one potential match having said at least portion of the unique identifier associated therewith other persons'"'"' data records in the at least one individual search data source comprises the step of implementing at least one comparison test.

8. The method according to claim 7 wherein the data representing the at least one potential match comprises a last name field, a first name field and a middle initial field and the at least one comparison test comprises a three-name-field matching test wherein the last name field, first name field and middle initial fields are compared to corresponding last name field, first name field and middle initial field, respectively, in the data records retrieved from the at least one individual search data source.

9. The method according to claim 8 wherein the at least one comparison test comprises a plurality of comparison tests and another one of the at least one comparison test comprises a two-out-of-three name fields matching test.

10. The method according to claim 9 wherein the two-out-of-three name fields matching test is not implemented if there is no middle initial or middle name field provided either in the data records of the potential match or the data records retrieved from the at least one individual search data source.

11. The method according to claim 9 wherein the at least one comparison test further comprises a compressed name field match test that comprises the steps of:

compressing the last name, first name and middle initial or middle name, if provided, of the at least one potential match and the person or person'"'"'s data records retrieved from the at least one individual search data source so as to eliminate all spaces and punctuation; and

comparing the compressed last, first and middle initial or middle names of the at least one potential match and the person or person'"'"'s data records retrieved from the at least one individual search data source.

12. The method according to claim 11 wherein the at least one comparison test further comprises a sound comparison test which compares the sound of the pronunciation of the person'"'"'s name designated as the potential match and the person'"'"'s name defined by the data records retrieved from the at least one individual search data source.

13. The method according to claim 1 wherein said unique identifier is selected from the group consisting of a social security number, a date of birth, a driver'"'"'s license number, a Medicare identification number, and a tax identification number.

14. The method according to claim 1 wherein one of the at least two different and unique sources of data comprises data records of all deceased individuals.

15. The method according to claim 1 further including the step of providing at least one address believed to be associated with said individual for uniquely identifying said individual.

16. The method according to claim 1 further including the step of indicating that said potential match is said individual that is to be uniquely identified.

17. The method according to claim 1 wherein said step of determining whether said complete unique identifier uniquely identifies said individual includes validating and verifying said complete unique identifier and its correlation to said individual that is to be uniquely identified.

18. A method for singularly identifying an individual comprising the steps of:

(a) providing a plurality of data bases, each data base containing a unique category of data pertaining to a population of individuals;

(b) providing search data that comprises information that is associated with an individual that is to be uniquely electronically identified to the exclusion of all others within said population;

(c) searching one or more of the plurality of data bases using the search data to find additional information that may be related to the information defined by the search data;

(d) determining if the additional information constitutes a unique identifier of said individual or if the additional information constitutes generic, personal, identifiable information;

(e) indicating that the additional information singularly identifies said individual if the additional information constitutes a unique identifier of said individual;

(f) revising the search data to replace a portion of the search data with all or a portion of the additional information if it is determined that the additional information is not a unique identifier of said individual but instead is generic, personal, identifiable information; and

(g) repeating steps (c)-(f).

19. A program storage device readable by a processor capable of executing instructions, tangibly embodying a program of instructions executable by the processor to perform method steps for positively identifying an individual, said method comprising:

providing the name of an individual to be uniquely identified within a population to the exclusion of all others within said population;

providing at least two different and unique sources of data that contain data pertaining to said population;

providing access to at least one individual search data source;

comparing data from said at least two different and unique sources of data against each other based on said name of said individual to provide a collection of preliminary suspects;

searching said at least one individual search data source for additional data relating to said collection of preliminary suspects for locating at least one potential match;

verifying and validating said at least one potential match;

reconciling said at least one potential match with data from at least one of said different and unique data sources for locating at least a portion of a unique identifier that may be associated with said individual that is to be uniquely identified;

comparing said at least one potential match and said at least portion of the unique identifier with other data records within said at least one individual search data source for locating a complete unique identifier that may be associated with said individual that is to be uniquely identified; and

determining whether said complete unique identifier uniquely identifies said individual to the exclusion of all others within said population.

20. A computer program product comprising:

a computer usable medium having computer readable program code means embodied therein for positively identifying an individual, said computer program product having;

computer readable program code means for causing a computer to provide the name of an individual to be uniquely identified within a population to the exclusion of all others within said population;

computer readable program code means for causing a computer to provide at least two different and unique sources of data that contain data pertaining to said population;

computer readable program code means for causing a computer to access to at least one individual search data source;

computer readable program code means for causing a computer to compare data from said at least two different and unique sources of data against each other based on said name of said individual to provide a collection of preliminary suspects;

computer readable program code means for causing a computer to search said at least one individual search data source for additional data relating to said collection of preliminary suspects for locating at least one potential match;

computer readable program code means for causing a computer to verify and validating said at least one potential match;

computer readable program code means for causing a computer to reconcile said at least one potential match with data from at least one of said different and unique data sources for locating at least a portion of a unique identifier that may be associated with said individual that is to be uniquely identified;

computer readable program code means for causing a computer to compare said at least one potential match and said at least portion of the unique identifier with other data records within said at least one individual search data source for locating a complete unique identifier that may be associated with said individual that is to be uniquely identified; and

computer readable program code means for causing a computer to determine whether said complete unique identifier uniquely identifies said individual to the exclusion of all others within said population.