False positive alerts ― those system-generated events that flag normal behavior as suspicious ― are a big pain point for most anti-financial crime ( AFC ) professionals . Even though the activity is normal , AFC staff must still review the events and document their normalcy . Not only does this work balloon budgets , but it is also boring . Assessing thousands of transactions on routine activities leads to burnout , which creates turnover , which requires training new staff to start the cycle again . Eliminating false positives , therefore , is a top priority , as fewer of them mean more resources for productive investigations .
While the negatives of false positives are undeniable , they do have some benefits . For example , false positives are a necessary by-product of automated transaction monitoring . Without computerized systems , banks would have to review the transactions for suspicious activity manually , which would be extremely tedious work . False positives are also an excellent training tool . Senior investigators are not born . They learn to distinguish normal and criminal activity by reviewing true and false positive alerts .
Of course , no bank wants their AFC professionals drowning in busywork ; however , eliminating false positives is the wrong goal . Instead , banks should focus on adopting strategies to manage them .
ACAMS Today | March – May 2025 17