Method, system, and computer program product for linking customer information

• US 8,306,986 B2
• Filed: 09/29/2006
• Issued: 11/06/2012
• Est. Priority Date: 09/30/2005
• Status: Expired due to Fees

• Current Assignee: Liberty Peak Ventures, LLC (Dominion Harbor Enterprises, LLC)
• Original Assignee: American Express Travel Related Services Company, Inc. (American Express Company)
• Inventors: Mata, Ann Shelley, Weissman, Mary E., Routson, Nicholas K.
• Primary Examiner(s): Beausoliel, Jr., Robert
• Assistant Examiner(s): ALLEN, NICHOLAS E
• Application Number:
  US11/529,604
• Publication Number:
  US 20070192122A1
• Time in Patent Office: 2,230 Days
• Field of Search: 707/749, 707/796
• US Class Current: 707/749
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 16/211 Schema design and management
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 30/01 Customer relationship services
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 30/02 Marketing; Price estimation or determination; Fundraising
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 50/265 Personal security, identity or safety

Abstract

In a business where a database tracks customers and manages customer accounts, a method and system correctly link accounts with customers. The method entails reading customer information for a first customer and for a second customer, and then utilizing personal identification information obtained from other sources to determine if the first customer is the same as the second customer. If the first customer and the second customer are the same person, the first customer and the second customer are identified as being the same unique person. Accounts associated with the two customers are identified as belonging to the same unique person. Viewed another way, the method and system of the present invention takes an existing database of personal identification information, and cross-references that database against other sources of personal identification information to identify persons who appear to be separate persons, but who are actually one and the same individual.

Claims

1. A method comprising:

collecting, by a processing device for linking customer accounts, internal customer account data into a consolidated database;

comparing, by the processing device, the internal customer account data to identify unique customer accounts;

searching, by the processing device, an external third party database to identify personal identification information to compare with the internal customer account data consolidated in the consolidated database to facilitate creating a new association designation between a plurality of existing internal customer accounts;

analyzing, by the processing device, the internal customer account data and the personal identification information to identify customer accounts listed as belonging to separate customers that should be identified as belonging to a single customer; and

creating a new association designation between the plurality of existing internal customer accounts in response to the analyzing without modifying the internal customer account data of existing internal customer accounts.

2. The method of claim 1, further comprising:

identifying, by the processing device, at least one customer account in the consolidated database; and

identifying, by the processing device, at least one unique customer in the consolidated database,

wherein the searching the external database comprises searching the external database for personal identification information which corresponds to the at least one unique customer.

3. The method of claim 2, wherein the personal identification information which corresponds to the at least one unique customer is determined using a matching criteria and a filtering criteria, wherein the matching criteria and the filtering criteria are based on criteria comprising at least one of a name, a home address, a business address, a social security number, a date of birth, a home phone number, a business phone number, a cell phone number, an e-mail address, a drivers license number, an account name, or an account number of the at least one unique customer in the consolidated database.

4. The method of claim 2, wherein the creating the new association designation between the plurality of internal customer accounts further comprises:

assigning a unique persistent ID to each unique customer; and

assigning to each customer account the persistent ID of the unique customer associated with the account.

5. The method of claim 1, wherein creating a new association designation between a plurality of internal customer accounts further comprises:

analyzing the consolidated database according to an initial set of association designation rules;

creating an initial association designation recommendation for multiple customer accounts based on the analyzing the consolidated database according to the initial set of association designation rules;

analyzing the initial association designation recommendation according to a secondary set of association designation rules;

creating a secondary association designation recommendation for multiple customer accounts based on the analyzing of the initial association designation recommendation; and

producing a final account and customer identification association designation based on the secondary association designation recommendation.

6. The method of claim 5, wherein the creating an initial association designation recommendation comprises:

identifying a set of customers as a single unique customer, wherein each customer in the set of customers was previously identified as being unique;

recommending that all customers in the set be consolidated into a single unique customer; and

recommending that all customer accounts associated with the customers in the set be associated with the single unique customer.

7. The method of claim 5, where the analyzing the initial association designation recommendation comprises at least one of matching customer accounts having an exact match on a name and social security number associated with the customer accounts and having no generation code conflict between the customer accounts, or matching customer accounts having an exact match on a name and address associated with the customer accounts and having no generation code conflict or social security number conflict between the customer accounts.

8. A method comprising:

accessing, by a processing device for linking customer accounts, a first personal identification information for a first customer who is an account owner of a first account and a second personal identification information for a second customer who is an account owner of a second account;

searching, by the processing device, an external third party database to identify additional personal identification information which is compared to the first personal identification information of the first customer to facilitate creating a new association designation between a plurality of existing internal customer accounts;

analyzing, by the processing device, the first personal identification information, the second personal identification information, and the additional personal identification information for data to enhance the identification information;

determining, by the processing device, that the first customer is a same unique customer as the second customer in response to the analysis of the first personal identification information, the second personal identification information, and the additional personal identification information which is related to the first personal identification information; and

creating a new association designation, by the processing device, associated with the first account to the second account in response to the determining that the first customer is the same unique customer as the second customer in response to the analysis of the personal identification information, without modifying the data of first account or the data of the second account.

9. The method of claim 8, wherein the searching the database comprises searching an external database.

10. The method of claim 8, wherein the determining that the first customer is the same unique customer as the second customer comprises analyzing the personal identification information according to a set of association designation rules, wherein the association designation rules are based on criteria comprising at least one of a name, a home address, a business address, a social security number, a date of birth, a home phone number, a business phone number, a cell phone number, an e-mail address, a drivers license number, an account name, or an account number of the first personal identification information, the second personal identification information for the second customer, or the additional personal identification information which is related to the first personal identification information of the first customer.

11. The method of claim 8, wherein the creating a new association designation associated with the first account to the second account comprises:

assigning a unique persistent ID to the unique customer; and

assigning to the first account and to the second account the unique persistent ID of the unique customer.

12. The method of claim 8, wherein:

searching the database further comprises using the processing device to search the database for additional personal identification information which is related to the personal identification information of the second customer; and

wherein the determining that the first customer is the same unique customer as the second customer based on the analysis further comprises determining using the processing device that the first customer is the same unique customer as the second customer based on an analysis of the first personal identification information, the second personal identification information, the additional personal identification information which is related to the first personal identification information of the first customer, and the additional personal identification information which is related to the second personal identification information of the second customer.

13. A system comprising:

a processor for linking customer accounts; and

a memory in communication with the processor, the memory storing a plurality of processing instructions for directing the processor to;

read, by the processor, a first personal identification information for a first customer who is an account owner of a first account and a second personal identification information for a second customer who is an account owner of a second account;

search, by the processor, an external third party database to identify additional personal identification information to compare with the first personal identification information of the first customer to facilitate creating a new association designation between a plurality of existing internal customer accounts;

analyze, by the processor, the first personal identification information, the second personal identification information, and the additional personal identification information for data to enhance the identification information;

determine, by the processor, that the first customer is a same unique customer as the second customer in response to the analysis of the first personal identification information, the second personal identification information, and the additional personal identification information which is related to the first personal identification information of the first customer; and

create, by the processor, a new association designation associated with the first account to the second account, in response to the determining that the first customer is the same unique customer as the second customer in response to the analysis of the personal identification information, without modifying the data of first account or the data of the second account.

14. The system of claim 13, wherein the instructions to read a first personal identification information for a first customer who is an account owner of a first account and a second personal identification information for a second customer who is an account owner of a second account further comprise instructions to direct the processor to collect internal customer accounts into a consolidated database.

15. The system of claim 13, wherein the instructions to search a database for the additional personal identification information which is related to the first personal identification information of the first customer further comprise instructions to direct the processor to search an external database.

16. The system of claim 13, wherein the instructions to determine that the first customer is the same unique customer as the second customer based on an analysis of the first personal identification information, the second personal identification information, and the additional personal identification information which is related to the first personal identification information further comprise:

instructions to direct the processor to analyze the personal identification information according to a set of association designation rules, wherein the association designation rules are based on criteria comprising at least one of a name, a home address, a business address, a social security number, a date of birth, a home phone number, a business phone number, a cell phone number, an e-mail address, a drivers license number, an account name, or an account number of the first personal identification information for the first customer, the second personal identification information for the second customer, or the additional personal identification information which is related to first the personal identification information of the first customer.

17. The system of claim 13, wherein the instructions to create a new association designation associated with the first account to the second account comprise instructions to direct the processor to:

assign a unique persistent ID to the unique customer; and

assign to the first account and to the second account the unique persistent ID of the unique customer.

18. The system of claim 13, wherein:

the instructions to search a database for the additional personal identification information which is related to the first personal identification information of the first customer further comprise instructions to direct the processor to search the database for additional personal identification information which is related to the second personal identification information of the second customer; and

the instructions to determine that the first customer is the same unique customer as the second customer based on an analysis of the first personal identification information, the second personal identification information, and the additional personal identification information which is related to the first personal identification information further comprise instructions to the processor to determine that the first customer is the same unique customer as the second customer based on an analysis of the first personal identification information, the second personal identification information, the additional personal identification information which is related to the personal identification information of the first customer, and the additional personal identification information which is related to the personal identification information of the second customer.