MERCHANDISE RETURN FRAUD PREVENTION SYSTEM AND METHOD

A system and method for return fraud prevention is provided, which includes a point of return terminal having an input means for accepting, identifying information presented by a person returning at least one article of merchandise and has at least one display unit for displaying digital photographic images of persons and textual information. The system further includes at least one remote database site having stored therein a database comprising a plurality of digital photographic images of persons to be identified. Linking the return terminal and the remote database site is a communications link, which allows data to be interchanged between the point of return terminal and the remote database site. The veracity of the system is ensured by including a means to verifying that the point of return terminal is authorized to access the remote database site, a means for verifying that an identifier present at the return terminal is also authorized to access the remote database site, and a means for verifying that the identifier present at the point of return terminal has compared the digital photographic images displayed on the return terminal display with the physical appearance of the person returning the merchandise and that a match exists between at least one of the displayed photographic images and the physical appearance of the person returning the merchandise.