3.8 - Order Verification & Fraud Screening for E-commerce Stores (Difficulty: Beginner | Path: Launch)

What is a Manual Review Checklist for Risky Orders?

What is it? This is a simple 5-step checklist you use when an order is flagged as 'Medium' or 'High' risk. It's your human investigation to see if the order is legitimate or fraudulent.

Why is it important? An automated flag is just a warning. This manual review is where you use your human brain to connect the dots. It's the process that saves you from shipping a $300 order that an automated filter might miss. This is your personal loss prevention.

Your 5-Step Manual Review Checklist

1. Check the Risk Flags: What *specifically* failed? Was it the AVS (address), the CVV (security code), or both? (Both failing is a major red flag).
2. Billing vs. Shipping: Do the addresses match? If not, how far apart are they? (A gift to a family member in the same city is common. An order from a US billing address shipping to a freight forwarder in another country is high risk).
3. Check the IP Address: Does the customer's IP address (where they placed the order) match the billing address country? (An IP from Vietnam using a credit card from Ohio, USA, is a massive red flag).
4. Check Google Maps: Look up the shipping address. Is it a real house/apartment, or is it a known freight forwarder, a shipping container yard, or a vacant lot?
5. Check Customer History: Is this a new customer, or do they have a history of successful orders with you? (A repeat customer is almost always safe).

If it still feels risky after this 5-step check, you either email the customer to verify (see 3.7.1.3) or you cancel the order (see 3.8.2).