Thinkstream, Inc., the Louisiana Bankers Association and the Louisiana Department of Public Safety partner to offer first of its kind ID verification service to the Financial Services Industry

Officials say the solution will help fight the growing threat of identity theft and fraud to Louisiana banks and credit unions statewide

Baton Rouge, LA, November 11, 2007 – Financial Crime and Identity Theft represent the leading loss to financial institutions totaling tens of billions of dollars in losses each year. By all accounts it is fast becoming the "Crime of the Millennium" and law enforcement tasks forces are springing up in state and local agencies throughout the nation. Where Identity Theft is involved it doesn't stop with the loss to the financial institutions but it wrecks major havoc on the innocent persons whose identity has been stolen. The innocent victims of identity theft number in the millions and the number of victims is rising each year.

The use of a fraudulent drivers' license by the criminal is noted to be common in over 80% of the financial crimes. The Louisiana Bankers Association long ago recognized that the verification of the legitimacy of a persons driver's license would greatly reduce the devastating cost of financial fraud and sought out help from Thinkstream, Incorporated. Thinkstream provides real time access to a national network of justice databases including drivers' license databases for all 50 states. However tradition has allowed only members of law enforcement access to this national network including driver's license databases. The LBA and Thinkstream, in cooperation with the Louisiana Department of Public Safety, moved to change this long standing tradition with the launch of the pioneering fraud prevention program for Louisiana banks and credit unions.

Available through the Thinkstream/LBA/DPS partnership, banks and credit unions throughout Louisiana will be the first financial institutions in the country to take advantage of a solution which insures authoritative ID verification from the State driver's license database. The LBA recognized that the only sure way to verify the authenticity of a persons' identity was to do so with real time access to the Louisiana Drivers' License Database. The LA DPS recognized the seriousness of the national problem and was quick to approve the request by the LBA with the provision that the system protect the privacy rights of the individuals.

To further protect banks from fraud, the Thinkstream ID Verification solution also gives tellers a method to instantly notify security officers if a fraudulent transaction is occurring. Once fraud with a particular ID has been logged by Thinkstream, this information will immediately be made available to all other participating banks. Suspicious patterns of activity are also monitored and made available to the attending teller. This means that a person can no longer go from bank to bank committing fraud with the ID. When they try to use the ID again, Thinkstream will instantly notify the teller that this ID has already been used to commit fraud.

Thinkstream's ID Verification solution was tested by six Louisiana banks in a pilot program over the summer to allow for the testing and fine tuning of the system. For the first time tellers, new account and loan representatives were able to instantly verify the identity of a person in real time against the LA Drivers' License database in just seconds. The participation and the feedback from the member banks enabled Thinkstream to make critical improvements to the security system and in several cases fraudulent crimes were prevented using the system.

The Thinkstream ID Verification product offers bank personnel instant validation of a person's driver's license through a secure web service application, by reading the information from a card scanner or through direct integration into an existing banking application. After a person's driver's license number has been entered in or scanned, Thinkstream will retrieve that license's information directly from the DMV and instantly return the correct information. If the query does not match the presented identification, bank personnel are instantly alerted of suspected forgery.

The Fraud Prevention program also enables the immediate notification of the fraud attempt to every participating member bank, thereby stopping the fraudulent transaction permanently. The mission given Thinkstream by the LBA was "stop the fraud attempt once and stop it forever". The powerful statewide banking network developed by Thinkstream addresses this issue and allows for the immediate notification of every member bank of fraudulent activities.

Banking managers and security personnel said they are convinced Thinkstream's ID Verification solution will greatly reduce check fraud as well as the opening of fraudulent new accounts and loans.

Thinkstream, Inc. President and CEO Barry Bellue said "here again Louisiana is leading the nation in a program to protect its citizens against a serious crime outbreak with innovative policies and leading edge technology The LA DPS has formed a tactical fraudulent crimes task force to fight this criminal activity. Louisiana plans on putting the criminals out of business in this state and the work of the LA DPS, LBA and Thinkstream will have a major impact on this criminal activity." Bellue said.

Bellue said the company was perfectly poised to offer such a system because it already has developed a mature information technology platform that supports criminal justice applications that tie agencies together giving them the ability to rapidly share critical information across organizational, agency and geographic boundaries. In the State of Louisiana, Thinkstream has deployed the largest civil and criminal information network in the nation, and recently deployed a statewide inmate tracking and emergency classification system (ITEC) in cooperation with the Louisiana Department of Corrections.

"As a proven leader in developing software that protects our law enforcement and our communities we're excited that banks and credit unions in Louisiana can be the first in the country to have access to this kind of ID Verification service," Bellue said.

"Identity fraud is the fastest growing crime in America, costing financial institutions billions per year while turning thousands of their customers into victims," he said. "As a result, a robust and reliable ID validation system has been increasing in demand, and we have delivered."

About Thinkstream
Thinkstream Inc., a leading software development company based in Baton Rouge, Louisiana, specializes in criminal justice applications that tie agencies together securely giving them the ability to rapidly share critical information across organizational, agency and geographic boundaries. In the State of Louisiana, the Company has deployed the largest civil and criminal information network in the nation. The company also operates systems in California, Florida, Mississippi and Texas. Most recently, the company deployed a statewide inmate tracking and emergency classification system in cooperation with the Louisiana Department of Corrections. The ITEC system will eventually give all law enforcement agencies the ability to share and access local, state and federal information about an inmate.

Thinkstream Inc. is an active member of the Internet Working Group for Justice Integration Committee. Established by the U.S. Department of Justice, committee members contribute their knowledge and experience to promote and implement integrated information systems (IJIS) throughout the country.

For more information contact:

Barry L. Bellue, Sr.
President and CEO
Thinkstream, Inc.
Email: bbellue@thinkstream.com
Phone: (225) 291-5440

Paul San Soucie
Vice President of Customer Relations
Thinkstream, Inc.
Email: pauls@thinkstream.com
Phone: (225) 291-5440
Fax: (225) 291-9141


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