Patent Publication Number: US-2003225686-A1

Title: Systems and methods for selective validation of phone numbers

Description:
REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS  
     [0001] This application claims the benefit of priority under 35 U.S.C. §119(e) of U.S. Provisional Application No. 60/381,756 filed on May 17, 2002 and entitled SYSTEMS AND METHODS FOR VALIDATION OF PHONE NUMBERS, the entirety of which is incorporated herein by reference.  
     [0002] The present application is a member of the set of related, co-pending, and commonly owned U.S. Patent applications having the following titles, each of which was filed on even date herewith:  
     [0003] 1. SYSTEMS AND METHODS FOR VALIDATION OF PHONE NUMBERS  
     [0004] 2. SYSTEMS AND METHODS FOR STORING AND USING PHONE NUMBER VALIDATIONS  
     [0005] 3. SYSTEMS AND METHODS FOR ACCESSING AND USING PHONE NUMBER VALIDATION INFORMATION  
     [0006] 4. SYSTEMS AND METHODS FOR SELECTIVE VALIDATION OF PHONE NUMBERS  
     [0007] 5. SYSTEMS AND METHODS FOR USING PHONE NUMBER VALIDATION IN A RISK ASSESSMENT 
    
    
     
       BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION  
       [0008] 1. Field of the Invention  
       [0009] The invention relates generally to authentication systems and, more specifically, to methods of risk analysis.  
       [0010] 2. Description of the Related Art  
       [0011] Promissory payments accepted by a merchant during a point-of-sale purchase or other financial transaction may expose the merchant to some risk of nonpayment. Some examples of such promissory payments are payments made by check, credit card, debit card, private label, gift card, and other methods.  
       [0012] Several methods and services are available to help merchants manage risk at point-of-sale and other financial transactions. One example of such a method is the maintenance of a “negative database,” which, in one embodiment, is a list or database of known problematic check-writers for comparison with a current check-writer who is offering to pay for a transaction with a promissory payment. Risk assessment scoring methods may also be used to assist in judging the desirability of entering into a current transaction.  
       [0013] However, in spite of the use of such methods, losses from point-of-sale and other financial transactions continue to occur. Methods that are able to help further reduce the risk of such transactions, especially methods that do not make undue additional demands in terms of required resources, such as equipment, time, or cost, therefore, continue to be useful.  
       [0014] From a risk management point of view, receiving supplemental forms of identification for a check-writer, or other payor, together with a promissory payment is often desirable. However, because of privacy issues, customers are often increasingly hesitant to give personal identity information, such as a Social Security Number or even a driver&#39;s license number. Point-of-sale transactions executed in person, over the telephone, or over the Internet or other wired or wireless computer system often pose the additional constraint that a decision regarding acceptance or denial of an offered promissory payment be made while the customer waits for the transaction to be completed. Merchants thus face the problem of finding methods to decrease their risk in ways that are acceptable to their customers.  
       SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION  
       [0015] Embodiments of a system that validates phone numbers received in conjunction with an overall financial transaction acceptance system are described. Typically, if a phone number that is offered by a customer or other entity in conjunction with a financial transaction may be verified as being a valid working phone number, the statistically calculated risk of the transaction decreases. Thus, information about the validity of a telephone number offered in association with a financial transaction may be used as a factor in a larger risk assessment of the transaction and may additionally or alternatively be used alone as an indication of the risk associated with a transaction.  
       [0016] In one embodiment of the phone number validation systems described herein, a point-of-sale (POS) device with a telephone line connection accepts a phone number from a customer who is offering a promissory payment and dials the phone number during the transaction process to confirm that the telephone number is a working number. In other embodiments, the phone number validation system is used in conjunction with a request by an entity, made online, in person, via telephone or other communications method, to purchase a good or service, open a bank account, purchase insurance, or enter into another type of financial agreement that may pose a financial risk. For example, phone validation may be used as part of a consumer authentication for a membership program.  
       [0017] Automatic dialer systems, commonly used in the telemarketing and debt collection industries, exist that enable a telephone to recognize a distinctive tone (for example, a 914 Hz sine wave) that telephone networks may use to indicate that a non-valid telephone number has been dialed. Using automatic dialer technology, POS devices with telephone connections may be configured to dial a given telephone number and to distinguish between working and non-working numbers. The POS device may be further configured to make such a call to a number offered in conjunction with a proposed transaction and to notify a clerk associated with the transaction of the results. In the case of a number that is dialed and found to be non-working, the POS may thereby alert the clerk to a potentially risky transaction. Information about the validity or non-validity of a given telephone number may additionally or alternatively be provided to a risk scoring system as a factor in a risk analysis of the transaction.  
       [0018] Using a customer&#39;s telephone number as an additional form of identification for risk assessment purposes at a point-of-sale transaction has several advantages. One advantage is the fact that customers often find the idea of giving out their current phone number to be less offensive and worrisome than revealing other types of identification information, such as a Social Security Number. Another advantage of using a customer&#39;s phone number as an input to a risk analysis for a financial transaction is the fact that, unlike many other forms of identification in use across the United States, telephone numbers have a standardized length and format, making them easier to incorporate into a computer-implemented transaction system than non-standardized identifiers, such as driver&#39;s licenses.  
       [0019] From a point-of-sale risk management perspective, telephone numbers are additionally useful because customers whose intention it is to commit fraud may not know the true number associated with a payment instrument they wish to use, and may decide to make up a number when asked for their telephone number. Customers attempting to commit fraud may also make up numbers because they do not want to give their true phone numbers. Furthermore, customers who habitually commit fraud are known to typically relocate frequently, and may thus not have a correct number to give.  
       [0020] Phone numbers collected to reduce risk as described above may additionally be used for contacting a consumer in the case of unpaid or disputed payments and may also be collected for marketing or other purposes.  
       [0021] In one embodiment, a retrievable record is kept of telephone numbers for which validations have been carried out and of the results of the validation checks performed. For subsequent transactions, in addition to or as an alternative to dialing the telephone number offered by the customer, the POS device may attempt to verify the given telephone number by referring to one or more retrievable records that comprise information about telephone numbers that have been previously determined to be valid or non-valid.  
       [0022] In one embodiment, prior to dialing the telephone number offered by a customer or other entity desirous of participating in a financial transaction, or as an alternative to dialing the telephone number, the POS device may consult stored information that may be indicative of the validity or probable validity of the telephone number.  
       [0023] As one example, the POS device may consult a list of telephone number prefixes associated with the telephone area code offered by the customer. If the prefix of the telephone number offered by the customer does not appear on the list, the POS device may determine that the telephone number is not valid, without any need for actually dialing the telephone number. Other types of stored information may also be accessed to gain an indication of whether the telephone number conforms to rules governing valid telephone number combinations.  
       [0024] The stored information may be stored within at least one of: memory in the POS device, memory in a local host computer accessible by the POS device, and memory in a remote host computer accessible by the POS device.  
       [0025] In one embodiment, customer telephone numbers are requested in association with transactions, and the telephone numbers offered are validated for a subset of the transactions. For example, in one embodiment, telephone numbers may be validated for purchase transactions that exceed a threshold dollar amount. In other embodiments, the telephone numbers may be validated for transactions that meet another criterion or that are selected at random. Thus, any outlay of resources, such as time, money, or computer resources, is avoided for the instances in which no check is made, while a deterrent effect upon customers wishing to commit fraud may be exerted by the simple act of asking for and selectively checking telephone numbers.  
       [0026] In one embodiment, phone number validation is carried out as part of a larger risk assessment for the transaction. For example, a third party service that assists merchants to minimize their risk of point-of-sale loss by assessing the risk associated with a financial transaction may incorporate phone number validation results as part of a risk assessment that comprises a risk scoring process. Thus, the results of a phone number validation may be considered as a factor, amongst other factors, relevant to a risk assessment for a transaction.  
       [0027] An embodiment of a method of a method is disclosed for using a point-of-sale device to reduce the risk associated with financial transactions involving promissory payments. The method comprises the acts of: receiving multiple telephone numbers from entities participating in financial transactions at a point-of-sale; and performing risk assessment for transactions from a subset of the financial transactions by selectively determining whether a telephone number associated with a financial transaction from the subset is a valid number or is a non-valid number.  
       [0028] An embodiment of an apparatus is disclosed, wherein the apparatus comprises a computer processor that is configured to receive telephone numbers in association with multiple financial transactions and to determine for a subset of the financial transactions whether a telephone number associated with at least one transaction from the subset is a valid telephone number.  
       [0029] An embodiment of a computer storage medium is disclosed, wherein the computer storage medium is encoded with instructions for enhancing the security of a point-of-sale financial transaction. The computer medium comprises a computer encoded instruction for receiving multiple telephone numbers associated with point-of-sale financial transactions and a computer encoded instruction for selectively determining whether a telephone number associated with one of a subset of the financial transactions is valid.  
       [0030] An embodiment of a system for enhancing the security of financial transactions is described. The system comprises means for receiving multiple telephone numbers that are associated with multiple financial transactions and means for selectively determining if a telephone number associated with one of a subset of the financial transactions is valid.  
       [0031] For purposes of summarizing the invention, certain aspects, advantages and novel features of the invention have been described herein. It is to be understood that not necessarily all such advantages may be achieved in accordance with any particular embodiment of the invention. Thus, the invention may be embodied or carried out in a manner that achieves or optimizes one advantage or group of advantages as taught herein without necessarily achieving other advantages as may be taught or suggested herein.  
       [0032] BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS  
       [0033]FIG. 1 is a block diagram depicting one embodiment of a point-of-sale transaction processor with a telephone number validation system.  
       [0034]FIG. 2A is a block diagram depicting one embodiment of a point-of-sale transaction processor with a telephone number validation system and one or more associated databases.  
       [0035]FIG. 2B is a table depicting one embodiment of a telephone number validation status database that may be used in conjunction with a telephone number validation system.  
       [0036]FIG. 2C is a table depicting one embodiment of an area code/telephone prefix correlation database that may be used in conjunction with a telephone number validation system.  
       [0037]FIG. 2D is a table depicting one embodiment of an area code/zip code/telephone prefix correlation database that may be used in conjunction with a telephone number validation system.  
       [0038]FIG. 2E is a table depicting one embodiment of a customer ID/telephone number correlation database that may be used in conjunction with a telephone number validation system.  
       [0039]FIG. 3A is a block diagram depicting one embodiment of a merchant point-of-sale system that utilizes a third-party telephone number validation service.  
       [0040]FIG. 3B is a block diagram depicting one embodiment of a merchant point-of-sale system and a third-party telephone number validation service that uses phone number validation information as part of a risk analysis for a transaction occurring at the point of sale.  
       [0041]FIG. 4 is a flowchart that describes one embodiment of a method to use phone number validation in conjunction with a point-of-sale payment transaction.  
       [0042]FIG. 5 is a flowchart that describes a second embodiment of a method to use phone number validation in conjunction with a point-of-sale payment transaction.  
       [0043]FIG. 6 is a flowchart that describes an embodiment of a method to use phone number validation services offered by a third party in conjunction with a point-of-sale payment transaction. 
     
    
    
     DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS  
     [0044] Although detailed embodiments of the present invention are disclosed herein, it is to be understood that the disclosed embodiments are merely exemplary of the telephone number validation system and methods, which may be embodied in various forms. Therefore, specific structural and functional details disclosed herein are not to be interpreted as limiting, but merely as a basis for the claims and as a representative basis for teaching one skilled in the art to variously employ the methods in virtually any appropriately detailed structure.  
     [0045] For example, although the telephone number validation system is described herein as being implemented at a merchant&#39;s point-of-sale terminal, the methods disclosed may also be advantageously employed in other situations and locations in which increased confidence in the reliability of an individual is desirable.  
     [0046] Referring to the figures in more detail:  
     [0047]FIG. 1 depicts one embodiment of a point-of-sale (POS) transaction processor  100  that comprises a telephone number validation system  115 . The POS processor  100  is configured to execute a variety of functions associated with point-of-sale transactions between a clerk, or other merchant representative, and a customer, or other entity desirous of participating in a transaction. The POS processor  100  may be deployed, for example, in association with a merchant&#39;s checkout cash register. In other embodiments, the telephone number validation system  115  is configured to operate without the presence of a merchant representative, such as in association with a self-serve checkout stand or with a server for a network-based merchant computer site that may be accessed by a suitably configured computer device. For purposes of this description, the term “customer” shall refer to an entity who desires to participate in a transaction and who offers a telephone number in conjunction with the transaction.  
     [0048] The POS processor  100  may be embodied, by way of example, as a personal computer (PC), mainframe computer, other processor, program logic, or other substrate configuration representing data and instructions, which operates as described herein. In other embodiments, the processor  100  may comprise controller circuitry, processor circuitry, a general purpose single-chip or multi-chip microprocessor, digital signal processor, embedded microprocessor, microcontroller and the like.  
     [0049] The POS processor  100  comprises a transaction manager  105  that manages transaction processes associated with a financial transaction between the clerk and the customer. The transaction manager  105  may be implemented as hardware or software or as a combination of the two. In one embodiment, the transaction manager  105  is implemented as a software plug-in for the POS processor  100 .  
     [0050] As part of the transaction process, the transaction manager  105  prompts the clerk to input a variety of transaction input data  110  related to the current financial transaction. In the embodiment shown in FIG. 1, the transaction input  110  comprises a phone number received from the customer. In one embodiment, the clerk verbally asks the customer for a telephone number and manually inputs the phone number to the POS processor  100 . In another embodiment, the customer speaks a telephone number into a suitably configured voice recognition system. In one embodiment, the phone number may be read off the face of a check offered as payment. In one embodiment, the phone number may be read electronically from an instrument in which a phone number is embedded in an electronically readable form, such as in the magnetic stripe of a driver&#39;s license. In other embodiments, other methods of inputting transaction data  110  may be used, as will be familiar to one of ordinary skill in the art.  
     [0051] As depicted in FIG. 1, the POS processor  100  further comprises a telephone number validation system  115 , which may be activated to automatically dial the phone number  120  given for a transaction. The telephone number validation system  115  may be implemented as hardware or software or as a combination of the two. In one embodiment, the telephone number validation system  115  is implemented as a software plug-in for the POS processor  100 , and may be added to existing equipment at a POS terminal.  
     [0052] The telephone number validation system  115  determines whether the phone number  120  received from the customer is valid or non-valid and provides this determination to the transaction manager  105  for use in managing the transaction process. In the embodiment shown in FIG. 1, the telephone number validation system  115  is configured to recognize tones indicative of working telephone numbers and tones indicative of non-working telephone numbers, and to use the tones to distinguish between the working and the non-working numbers. In one embodiment, the telephone number validation system  115  in FIG. 1 makes its determination regarding the validity or non-validity of the given telephone number by using a telephone connection associated with the POS device to dial the phone number  120  given and by perceiving the type of tone produced. The telephone number validation system  115  may then make the results of the determination available to the transaction manager  105  for use in processing the current transaction.  
     [0053] In one embodiment, the telephone number validation system  115  is activated to check the validity of a phone number for each transaction that involves payment by check, credit card, gift card, or other promissory form of payment. In other embodiments, the telephone number validation system  115  is activated to check the validity of a phone number for a subset of the transactions that involves payment by check, credit card, gift card, or other promissory form of payment.  
     [0054] For example, in one embodiment, the telephone number validation system  115  is selectively activated upon each transaction that exceeds a pre-determined dollar amount. In one embodiment, the telephone number validation system is selectively activated upon each transaction in which the given phone number  120  does not require a long-distance call. In one embodiment, the telephone number validation system is selectively activated upon each transaction in which the given phone number  120  does require a long-distance call. In one embodiment, the telephone number validation system  115  is selectively activated for randomly or near-randomly selected transactions, for example for transactions that are selected periodically based on elapsed time, based on elapsed number of transactions, based on a computerized random number generator, a pseudo-random number generator, or a near-random number generator. In other embodiments, the telephone number validation system  115  is activated for transactions that are selected based upon other criteria.  
     [0055] In one embodiment, the difference between a transaction for which a telephone number is requested and validated and a transaction for which a telephone number is requested and not validated is not readily apparent to the customer. Thus, the mere act of requesting telephone numbers and at least occasionally validating the telephone numbers may provide a deterrent effect upon customers wishing to perpetrate fraud.  
     [0056]FIG. 2A depicts one embodiment of a point-of-sale processor  200  with a telephone number validation system  215  that may access information in one or more phone number validity databases  225  as part of a phone number validation process, in addition to, or as an alternative to, determining phone number validity by dialing the phone number  220  in question.  
     [0057] The embodiment of the POS processor  200  depicted in FIG. 2A may comprise, by way of example, a personal computer (PC), mainframe computer, other processor, program logic, or other substrate configuration representing data and instructions, which operates as described herein. In other embodiments, the processor  200  may comprise controller circuitry, processor circuitry, a general purpose single-chip or multi-chip microprocessor, digital signal processor, embedded microprocessor, microcontroller and the like.  
     [0058] The embodiment of the POS processor  200  depicted in FIG. 2A comprises a transaction manager  205  and a telephone number validation system  215 , which checks the validity of a customer phone number received with transaction input  210  associated with the current transaction. In one embodiment, the telephone number validation system  215  is implemented as a software plug-in for the POS processor  200 , and may thus be added to existing equipment at a POS terminal. The telephone number validation system  215  is configured to dial a number  220  supplied by a customer in conjunction with a desired POS transaction. The telephone number validation system  215  is further configured to refer to one or more phone number validity databases  225  for validity information in addition to or as an alternative to determining phone number validity by dialing the phone number  220  in question.  
     [0059] As will be described in greater detail with respect to FIGS. 2B, 2C,  2 D, and  2 E below, phone number validity databases  225  comprise information that may be used by the telephone number validation system  215  to assist in determining the validity or invalidity of a telephone.  
     [0060] Referring to one or more databases  225  of information about valid and/or non-valid telephone numbers may, in some cases, allow the telephone number validation system  215  to make a determination regarding the validity or non-validity of a telephone number offered by a customer without needing to actually dial the offered telephone number. As one example of the types of information that may be useful to a telephone number validation system  215 , in some embodiments, the phone number validity databases  225  store information about telephone numbers whose validity or invalidity has been determined previously. In some embodiments, the previous determination took place when the telephone number  220  was last called and its validity or invalidity was determined based on a tone perceived by the telephone number validation system  215 . In some embodiments, information about the date of the previous determination is stored with the validity determination for a telephone number.  
     [0061] Based at least in part on the length of time that has elapsed since the previous determination, the telephone number validation system  215  may consider the stored information to be sufficiently current and may rely on the information as relevant for the current transaction. In one embodiment, a threshold amount of elapsed time, or less, between a validation determination and its use for assessing a given transaction is considered to be acceptable. Stored information from determinations made further in the past than allowed by the threshold limit is not used in place of determinations made by dialing the telephone number. Instead, a new determination by dialing may be made, and the stored information updated to reflect the new determination. In other embodiments, other methods of defining information as being “sufficiently current” may be used.  
     [0062] In some embodiments, phone number validity databases  225  comprise general information about telephone number correlations and conventions that may assist the telephone number validation system  215  in determining a telephone number&#39;s validity or invalidity. For example, in various embodiments, phone number validity databases  225  may store information about valid formatting for telephone numbers, or valid pairings or correlations between telephone numbers and area codes, between telephone numbers and zip codes, or the like. In some embodiments, databases  225  of general telephone number validity information may allow the telephone number validation system  215  to determine that the telephone number offered by a customer is not valid, for example because of an unacceptable pairing of area code and a telephone number prefix in the number offered by the customer. Information from databases  225  of general telephone number validity information may allow the telephone number validation system  215  to determine that the telephone number offered by a customer matches format and/or correlation information from the database  225  and thus is possibly either a valid or an invalid number. Thus, in some embodiments, information from a phone number validity database  225  may allow for a validation determination, such as a determination of invalidity, and in some cases information from a phone number validity databases  225  may suggest or indicate the possibility of validity, while not providing a definitive determination to that effect.  
     [0063] In some embodiments, the telephone number validation system  215  does not dial numbers that are determined to be non-valid based on database  225  information, and may dial the telephone number  220  if information from one or more phone number validity databases  225  indicates that the telephone number  220  may be either valid or invalid.  
     [0064] Phone number validity databases  225  may be configured in any of a number of formats and may comprise any of a variety of data contents indicative of the validity of telephone numbers. Example embodiments of phone number validity databases  225  are depicted in FIGS. 2B, 2C,  2 D, and  2 E. Other embodiments of databases  225  useful to the telephone number validation system  215  are also envisioned, as will be familiar to one of ordinary skill in the art.  
     [0065] One or more phone number validity databases  225  accessed by the telephone number validation system  215  may be stored internally in the POS processor  200 , as is depicted in the embodiment shown in FIG. 2A. One or more phone number validity databases  225  may additionally or alternatively be stored externally from the POS processor  200 . For example, in one embodiment, a merchant location comprises a plurality of checkout stands with POS processors  200  that are connected via a computer network. The phone number validity databases  225  may be stored on at least one of the networked POS processors  200  and may be accessible to the telephone number validation systems  215  of the other POS processors  200  by way of the network. In another embodiment, a merchant location comprises a central merchant server or other computer that is networked to one or more POS processors  200 , wherein the merchant server stores one or more phone number validity database  225  that is accessible to the POS processors  200  and that maintains a repository of data that is useful to the telephone number validation systems  215 .  
     [0066] In other embodiments, one or more phone number validity databases  225  that store data useful to the telephone number validation system  215  are maintained externally to the merchant location, such as on one or more remote servers, and are accessible to the telephone number validation system  215  of a POS processor  200  via wired or wireless computer network, dedicated phone lines, or other communication means. Externally maintained phone number validity databases  225  may be maintained in storage facilities associated with the merchant location, and may be maintained by a telephone company or third party information service. Externally maintained phone number validity databases  225  may additionally or alternatively be maintained by a third party phone number validation service, as will be described in greater detail with reference to FIGS. 3A and 3B below.  
     [0067] In various embodiments, accessing one or more phone number validity databases  225  by the telephone number validation system  215  may be activated at a variety of times. In one embodiment, for every transaction for which a phone number validation is desired, the telephone number validation system  215  consults one or more phone number validity databases  225  to see if the databases  225  comprise information about the validity of a number  220  offered by the customer before actually dialing the phone number  220 , so that placing a call may be avoided if possible.  
     [0068] In one embodiment, the telephone number validation system  215  consults one or more phone number validity databases  225  before actually dialing the phone number  220  when the number  220  received from the customer is a long distance number. In one embodiment, the telephone number validation system  215  consults one or more phone number validity databases  225  before actually dialing the phone number  220  when the number  220  received from the customer is not a long distance number. In one embodiment, the telephone number validation system  215  consults one or more phone number validity databases  225  before actually dialing the phone number  220  received from the customer when the amount of the proposed purchase is greater than a threshold amount. In one embodiment, the telephone number validation system  215  consults one or more phone number validity databases  225  before actually dialing the phone number  220  received from the customer when the telephone line available to the POS processor  200  is busy. In other embodiments, the telephone number validation system  215  consults one or more of the phone number validity databases  225  according to other advantageous criteria.  
     [0069]FIG. 2B is a table depicting one embodiment of a telephone number validation status database  225  that may be used in conjunction with a telephone number validation system  215 . In one embodiment, when the telephone number validation system  115  dials the phone number  220  received from the customer, the telephone number validation system  115  may store a record of the results of the associated phone number validity determination in the phone number validity database  225 , such as in FIG. 2B, so that the phone number validation information may be used in association with future transactions with the customer. In one embodiment, a phone number validity database  225  may comprise a list of phone numbers that have been tested recently and that have been found to be valid. In one embodiment, a phone number validity database  225  may comprise a list of phone numbers that have been tested recently and that have been found to be non-valid. In one embodiment, as depicted in FIG. 2B, the validity database may comprise a list of phone numbers  230  that have been dialed recently and that have been found to be valid or non-valid. The example database  225  in FIG. 2B comprises records, wherein each record comprises a phone number field  230 ; a status field  235  that indicates whether the phone number was found to be valid or non-valid; and a field  240  showing the date on which the information in the status field  235  was last verified by dialing or other methods.  
     [0070] In some embodiments, referring to the date  240  on which a given telephone number validity status  235  was last verified allows the telephone number validation system  215  to determine whether the data in the database  225  is sufficiently current to be useful to the system  215 . The telephone number validation system  215  may compare the date  240  from the database  225  to a threshold date in order to determine if the information in the database  225  is sufficiently current. In one embodiment, a threshold date used to determine that records of valid phone numbers may be considered sufficiently current for use by the system  215  is different from a threshold date used to determine that records of non-valid phone numbers are sufficiently current for use by the system  215 . In one embodiment, records whose date fields  240  do not meet a threshold value are purged from the database  225 .  
     [0071] In some embodiments, a phone number validity database  225  may comprise phone number validity information received from an external source, such as from a phone company or other third party information source. For example, a phone number validity database  225  may comprise general information about the validity of various telephone number configurations. Currently, in the United States and in some other countries, standard telephone numbers comprise a three-digit area code and a seven-digit local telephone number. The first three digits of the local telephone number are known collectively as a “prefix.” Not every possible combination of three digits comprises a valid telephone area code. Similarly, not every possible combination of three digits comprises a valid prefix for use in telephone numbers within a given area code. Valid area codes are typically associated with a limited number of possible prefixes. Thus, a phone number validity database  225  that lists valid area codes and/or valid area code-prefix pairings provides information that may allow the telephone number validation system  215  to make a determination regarding the non-validity or possible validity of a telephone number offered by a customer without needing to actually dial the offered telephone number.  
     [0072]FIG. 2C is a table depicting one embodiment of a database  225  comprising area code/telephone prefix correlation information that may be used in conjunction with a telephone number validation system  215 . As shown in the embodiment in FIG. 2C, records in the database  225  comprise an area code field  245  and a prefix field  250  that lists valid prefixes associated with each listed area code  245 . In one such embodiment, if the telephone number validation system  215  accesses the database  225  and finds that there is no match between an area code and a telephone number prefix provided by a customer, the telephone may be assumed to be non-valid. Thus, in one embodiment, the system may conclude that the number is not valid, without having to actually dial the number.  
     [0073]FIG. 2D is a table depicting one embodiment of an area code/zip code/telephone prefix correlation database  225  that may be used in conjunction with a telephone number validation system  215 . As shown in the embodiment in FIG. 2D, records in the database  225  comprise an area code field  255 , a zip code field  260  that lists valid zip codes associated with each listed area code, and a prefix field  275  that lists valid prefixes associated with each listed area code.  
     [0074] In embodiments that refer to the type of phone number validity database  225  depicted in FIG. 2D, zip code information for the customer is used in addition to telephone number information. If the zip code does not match a zip code listed as being correlated with the area code and/or the prefix offered by the customer, the number may be assumed to be non-valid. If the zip code does match, then further investigation may determine if the number is valid or non-valid.  
     [0075] In one embodiment, a customer may be prompted at a point-of-sale to offer a zip code in addition to a telephone number, and the zip code may be entered manually, verbally, via magnetic stripe, or in other suitable methods that will be familiar to one of ordinary skill in the art. In one embodiment, a suitably configured device scans an image of a check or other promissory payment with imprinted address information that is offered in conjunction with a transaction. The device makes the image available to the POS processor  200 . Zip code, city, and/or state information from the imprinted address may be captured using optical character recognition (OCR) technology and may be used in conjunction with a database  225  that correlates area code with city, state and/or zip code information. In one embodiment in which phone number validation is used in conjunction with an online purchase or other financial transaction, the telephone number validation system  215  may access city, state and/or zip code information from a customer&#39;s submitted billing address, home address, delivery address, or the like, in order to compare with an offered telephone number and with relevant information in a phone number validity database  225 .  
     [0076] In some situations, where privacy protection legislation and customary business practices permit, the phone number validation system  215  may further use phone number validity databases  225  to verify that the given phone number is not only a valid number, but that it is in fact associated with the financial instrument offered or with the customer who offered the phone number as his or her own.  
     [0077]FIG. 2E is a table depicting one embodiment of a customer identification/telephone number correlation database  225  that may be used in conjunction with a telephone number validation system  215 . In one embodiment of the customer identification/telephone number correlation database  225 , the records of the database  225  comprise a customer identifier field  280 , a telephone number field  285 , and a verification date field  290 . In the sample embodiment shown in FIG. 2E, the customer identifier field  280  comprises information about a driver&#39;s license or other government-issued identification card that is associated with a customer participating in a transaction. In other embodiments, the customer identifier field  280  may comprise one or more names of customers, or other identifiers. In the sample embodiment shown in FIG. 2E, the telephone number field  285  comprises one or more telephone numbers that have been previously determined to be valid and/or to be associated with the individual identified by information in the customer identification field  280 . In the sample embodiment shown in FIG. 2E, the date field  290  comprises at least one date per telephone number appearing in the phone number field  285 , indicating the date on which the phone number was last verified as being valid and/or as being associated with the individual identified in the customer identification field  280 .  
     [0078]FIGS. 2B, 2C,  2 D, and  2 E have depicted some examples of data contents and storage configurations of phone number validity databases  225  that may be used by embodiments of the telephone number validation systems  215 . As will be familiar to one of ordinary skill in the art, other data contents and other data storage configurations may also be used in conjunction with phone number validity databases  225  used by the telephone number validation systems  215  without departing from the spirit of the systems and methods described herein.  
     [0079]FIG. 3A is a block diagram depicting one embodiment of a merchant point-of-sale system  301  that utilizes a third-party phone number validation service  340 . In the embodiment shown in FIG. 3A, a merchant establishment  301  comprises a plurality of POS processors  300 . The POS processors  300  as depicted in FIG. 3A may comprise, by way of example, personal computers (PC), mainframe computers, other processors, program logic, or other substrate configurations representing data and instructions, which operate as described herein. In other embodiments, the processors may comprise controller circuitry, processor circuitry, general-purpose single-chip or multi-chip microprocessors, digital signal processors, embedded microprocessors, microcontrollers and the like.  
     [0080] As depicted in FIG. 3A, a POS processor  300  comprises a transaction manager  305  and a telephone number validation system  315  that verifies the validity of phone numbers provided as transaction input  310  in association with point-of-sale transactions. In the embodiment shown in FIG. 3A, the telephone number validation system  315  is configured to determine the validity of an offered telephone number  320  by dialing the telephone number  320 , by accessing information stored in one or more phone number validity databases  325 , by using the services of a third party phone number validation service  340 , as will be described in greater detail below, or by any combination of the foregoing methods.  
     [0081] The embodiment of the telephone number validation system  315  shown in FIG. 3A is configured to make a determination as to the validity or non-validity of the telephone number  320  based at least in part on dialing the telephone number  320 . The telephone number validation system  315  in FIG. 3A may additionally or alternatively access one or more phone number validity databases  325 , in substantially the same manner as was described with reference to FIG. 2A above.  
     [0082] The phone number validity database(s)  325  may comprise information about known valid and/or non-valid telephone numbers or about general telephone number correlation information, in substantially the same manner as was described with respect to FIGS. 2A, 2B,  2 C,  2 D, and  2 E. The phone number validity databases  325  accessible by the telephone number validation system  315  may also be created, maintained, and/or consulted in substantially the same manners as was described earlier with reference to the database(s)  225  in FIGS. 2A, 2B,  2 C,  2 D, and  2 E. For example, as described above, the databases  325  may be configured to store a variety of types of data useful to the telephone number validation system  315 . Furthermore, as described above, one or more of the databases  325  may be stored internally and/or externally to the POS processor  305  that implements the telephone number validation system  315 . For example, one or more databases  325  may be stored within a location in the merchant place of business  301  that is accessible to the associated POS processors  305 . The databases  325  may also be accessed selectively, as was described with respect to the databases  225  in FIG. 2A.  
     [0083] The embodiment of the telephone number validation system  315  shown in FIG. 3A is further configured to additionally or alternatively access a third party phone number validation service  340  that contracts with the merchant  301  to provide the merchant  301  with telephone number validation information. The embodiment of the third party phone number validation service  340  shown in FIG. 3A may directly dial the phone number  320  received from the customer in order to check the validity of the telephone number  320  based on the tone perceived when the number  320  is dialed.  
     [0084] The third party phone number validation service  340  may additionally or alternatively have access to one or more phone validity databases  330  that may be created, maintained, and/or consulted in substantially the same manner as the databases  225  described earlier with reference to FIGS. 2A, 2B,  2 C,  2 D, and  2 E. For example, as described, the databases  330  may be configured to store a variety of types of data useful to the third party phone number validation service  340 . Furthermore, as described above, the databases  330  may be stored internally and/or externally to the third party phone number validation service  340  that reports its findings to the telephone number validation system  315 .  
     [0085] In one embodiment, a telephone number validation system  315  that has access to a third party phone number validation service  340  does not have direct access to communication lines for directly dialing the telephone number  320  nor direct access to phone validity databases  325 . In such an embodiment, the telephone number validation system  315  may rely on the third party phone number validation service  340  to provide phone number validation information for numbers offered in conjunction with point-of-sale transactions. In one embodiment, the telephone number validation system  315  may be able to dial the telephone number  320  and may rely on the third party phone number validation service  340  to provide access to information stored in phone number validity databases  330  to which the third party phone number validation service  340  does have access.  
     [0086] Thus the telephone number validation system  315  may selectively use the services of the third party phone number validation service  340 . In one embodiment, the telephone number validation system  315  requests validation by the third party phone number validation service  340  for every transaction that involves a promissory payment. In one embodiment, the telephone number validation system  315  requests validation by the third party phone number validation service  340  for every transaction that involves a transaction amount above a given threshold amount, and relies on direct dialing or on information gathered from phone validity databases  330  for transaction amounts at or below the threshold. In one embodiment, the telephone number validation system  315  requests validation by the third party phone number validation service  340  when the number  320  given is a long-distance number. In other embodiments, the telephone number validation system  315  requests validation by the third party phone number validation service  340  based on other advantageous criteria.  
     [0087]FIG. 3B is a block diagram depicting one embodiment of a merchant point-of-sale system  301  that utilizes a third-party phone number validation service  340  which provides risk assessment services for merchant transactions. In the embodiment shown in FIG. 3B, the merchant establishment  301  comprises a plurality of POS processors  300 . The POS processors  300  as depicted in FIG. 3B may comprise, by way of example, personal computers (PC), mainframe computers, other processors, program logic, or other substrate configurations representing data and instructions, which operate as described herein. In other embodiments, the processors may comprise controller circuitry, processor circuitry, general-purpose single-chip or multi-chip microprocessors, digital signal processors, embedded microprocessors, microcontrollers and the like.  
     [0088] As depicted in FIG. 3B, a POS processor  300  comprises a transaction manager  305  and a telephone number validation system  315  that verifies the validity of phone numbers provided as transaction input  310  in association with point-of-sale transactions. The telephone number validation system  315  is configured to determine the validity of an offered telephone number  320  by dialing the telephone number  320 , by accessing information stored in one or more phone number validity databases  325 , by using the services of a third party phone number validation service  340 , or by any combination of the foregoing methods. In the embodiment shown in FIG. 3B, the merchant point-of-sale system  301  may further contract with the third party phone number validation service  340  to provide risk assessment services for merchant point-of-sale transactions.  
     [0089] As depicted in FIG. 3B, the third party phone number validation service  340  comprises a risk assessment system  370  for assessing a level of risk associated with accepting the promissory payment offered by the customer to the merchant. The risk assessment system  370  depicted in FIG. 3B comprises one or more risk scoring engine(s)  360  that communicate with a phone number validation module  350 . The risk assessment system  370  selects one or more of its scoring engines  360  for use in assessing a given merchant transaction. In one embodiment, the selected one or more scoring engines  360  calculate a risk score for the transaction that takes into consideration various factors that are deemed relevant to an assessment of the transaction&#39;s risk. Based on the calculated score, the third party phone number validation service  340  may recommend that the merchant point-of-sale system  301  accept the proffered promissory payment or that the merchant point-of-sale system  301  decline to accept the proffered promissory payment.  
     [0090] In such an embodiment, the telephone number validation system  315  of the merchant&#39;s POS processor  300  may transmit to the third party phone number validation service  340  data that may be used by the risk assessment system  370  in its assessment, according to the terms of agreement between the third party phone number validation service  340  and the merchant  301 . For example, in addition to the telephone number  320  offered by the customer, the telephone number validation system  315  may transmit identifying information about the customer, about the promissory payment, and about the transaction. In one embodiment, the telephone number validation system  315  may transmit information such as the customer telephone number, name, driver&#39;s license number, check amount, check account number, type of merchant, and location of merchant. The telephone number validation system  315  may transmit information about the customer&#39;s city, state and/or zip code. In one embodiment, information used by the scoring engine  360  is assigned a value, and the values assigned to factors used by the scoring engine  360  are aggregated to produce a risk score for the transaction.  
     [0091] In the embodiment depicted in FIG. 3B, a scoring engine  360  may use information about the validity of a telephone number  320  offered by a customer as a factor in producing the risk score for the transaction. The information about the validity of the telephone number  320  may be determined by the telephone number validation system  315  and may be transmitted to the risk assessment system  370  for use in assessing the risk of the transaction. Alternatively, the phone number validation module  350  of the risk assessment system  370  may determine the validity of the phone number  320 .  
     [0092] As depicted in FIG. 3B, the phone number validation module  350  may dial the telephone number  320  to determine whether the number is valid or not valid. Additionally or alternatively, the phone number validation module  350  may access information stored in one or more phone number validity databases  330 . Databases  330  may be maintained internally to the third party phone number validation service  340 , as is depicted in FIG. 3B. Additionally or alternatively, phone number validity databases  330  may be maintained externally to the third party phone number validation service  340  and may be accessed using any of a number of number of communications technologies.  
     [0093] In a system where a high score indicates a high level of confidence in the reliablity of the transaction, the risk scoring engines  360  may assign a high confidence score to a phone number  320  that is determined to be valid. A high phone validity score that is aggregated in with other risk factor scores by the scoring engine  360  may tend to raise the value of the aggregated risk score, indicating an increased confidence in the safety of the transaction. Conversely, the risk scoring engines  360  may assign a low confidence score to a phone number  320  that is determined to be non-valid. A low phone validity score that is aggregated in with other risk factor scores by the risk engines  360  may tend to lower the value of the aggregated risk score, indicating a decreased confidence in the safety of the transaction.  
     [0094] In various embodiments in which the scoring engines  360  aggregate scores associated with a variety of risk factors, a positive, high-value phone validity score may serve to raise an overall aggregated score, and the aggregated score may still indicate a risk level for the transaction that is unacceptable. Thus, the risk assessment system  370  may recommend declining to accept the check. Conversely, a negative, low-value phone validity score associated with a phone number that is found to be not valid may serve to lower an overall aggregated score, and the aggregated score may still indicate a confidence level for the transaction that is acceptable. Thus, the risk assessment system  370  may recommend accepting the check in spite of the invalid phone number, or may recommend double-checking the phone number before accepting the check.  
     [0095] In other embodiment, other methods of using phone validation information as a factor in a risk assessment for a financial transaction may be implemented without departing from the spirit of the systems and methods described herein, as will be familiar to one of ordinary skill in the art. For example, a low score may indicate a low level of risk, while a high score may indicate a high level of risk.  
     [0096]FIG. 4 is a flowchart that describes one embodiment of a process  400  to use phone number validation in conjunction with a point-of-sale financial transaction. As depicted in FIG. 4, the process  400  begins in state  405  where the clerk initiates a payment transaction for a customer on the POS processor device  100 . The process  400  moves to state  410  where the POS device  100  prompts the clerk to enter information associated with the payment transaction, including a phone number provided by the customer. The process  400  moves on to state  415  where the clerk enters the phone number  120 . In some embodiments, the phone number  120  is entered manually. In other embodiments, the phone number  120  may alternatively be entered via electronic scanning, voice input, or other data input methods, or may be retrieved from a stored repository of information.  
     [0097] The process  400  moves on to state  420  where the telephone number validation system  115  confirms whether the phone number  120  is valid. One method for confirming validity is to have the POS device  100  dial the number  120  entered for the transaction. Dialing the phone number may be executed as a background process, while the clerk and the customer continue to enter other data relevant to the payment transaction. The phone number validation process  400  meanwhile moves on to state  425  where the POS device  100  determines if the phone number  120  is valid. In one embodiment, if the POS device  100  does not detect a distinctive tone or other indicia signifying a non-working phone number, then the process  400  determines that the given telephone number is valid and moves on to state  430 , where the payment transaction may proceed until it ends in state  440 .  
     [0098] Returning to state  425 , if the POS device  100  does detect a distinctive tone or other indicia signifying a non-working phone number, then the process  400  moves on to state  445 , where the process  400  determines, in one embodiment, if this is the first non-working number that has been provided for the current payment transaction. In the embodiment described in FIG. 4, the process  400  allows for the entry of at most one non-valid phone number before terminating and denying the transaction. Allowing one non-valid number to be entered provides some accommodation for correcting a mistaken entry on the part of the clerk or an error on the part of the customer, without giving the customer an unlimited opportunity to offer randomly chosen numbers until one is finally determined to be valid. Other embodiments of a phone number validation system may accommodate the entry of a non-valid phone number in other ways, for example, by enforcing a different maximum number of non-valid phone numbers to be entered, by not enforcing any maximum number, or by not allowing for the entry of any additional telephone numbers after the entry of a non-valid number.  
     [0099] In some embodiments, when a determination regarding the validity or non-validity of the phone number  120  has been made in state  425 , an appropriate notation to record the phone number and the associated determination may be stored in a phone number validity database  225 , as was described in greater detail with reference to FIGS. 2A and 2B above.  
     [0100] As depicted in FIG. 4, if the process  400  determines in state  445  that this is not the first non-working number submitted in connection with this transaction, then the process  400  moves on to state  450 , where the transaction is terminated, and finally on to state  455  where the process  400  ends.  
     [0101] Returning to state  445 , if the process  400  determines that this is the first non-working phone number received for this transaction, then, in the embodiment depicted in FIG. 4, the process  400  moves on to state  460 , where another telephone number may be submitted. In one embodiment, the process  400  causes the phone number just tested to be displayed on the POS device  100  so that the clerk may read it back to the customer and may verify that the number was entered correctly. If the number was entered incorrectly, the clerk is given another opportunity to enter the customer&#39;s phone number.  
     [0102] In one embodiment, when the process  400  reaches state  460 , the telephone number that was just determined to be non-valid is not displayed or read back to the customer, and the clerk is prompted to again request a number for the customer. In other embodiments, other methods of identifying a number to be used in connection with this transaction are executed.  
     [0103] Once a phone number has been identified in state  460 , the process  400  moves to state  415  where the clerk once again enters the phone number, and then on to state  425  for validation of the number, proceeding either to state  430 , where the transaction is continued, or to state  450 , where the payment transaction is terminated.  
     [0104] In one embodiment of a process to use phone number validation to assess the predicted risk associated with a proposed transaction, the process takes place at a self-serve kiosk, home, office, or other location at which no clerk or merchant representative is physically present to facilitate the transaction. In such an embodiment, functions described with reference to the flowchart in FIG. 4 as being carried out by a clerk may be carried out, in a suitably configured system, by the customer and/or by automated processes implemented at the self-serve kiosk or other location. For example, rather than having a clerk enter the customer&#39;s telephone number, as in state  415  of FIG. 4, the customer may enter the telephone number manually, by voice input, by electronic scanning, or by other input methods implemented at the self-serve kiosk. These and other adaptations are envisioned for the systems and methods described herein and will be familiar to one of ordinary skill in the art. Furthermore, systems are envisioned in which the components of the process  400  are combined and/or configured in a different manner without departing from the spirit of the systems and methods described herein.  
     [0105]FIG. 5 is a flowchart that describes one embodiment of a process  500  to use phone number validation at a point-of-sale payment transaction in conjunction with one or more phone number validity databases  225 . The process  500  begins in state  505  when a clerk initiates a payment transaction. The process  500  moves on to state  510  where the clerk enters a customer phone number  220  for this transaction.  
     [0106] The process  500  moves to state  512  where the system determines whether a phone number validation will be carried out in association with the current transaction. In embodiments where phone validation is carried out for a subset of the transactions, and in which phone validation is not to be carried out for the current transaction, the process  500  moves directly to state  535  where the transaction is allowed to proceed. Such a decision not to carry out a phone number validation may be based on any one of a number of criteria. For example, the amount of the transaction may be below a threshold value set for phone number validation. The telephone number may be a long distance number, and the system may be configured to validate only local telephone numbers. Telephone number validation may be carried out for only a limited number of randomly selected transactions. These and other reason may cause the process  500 , in various embodiments, to allow the transaction to proceed without phone validation.  
     [0107] If the process  500  determines in state  512  that a phone number validation will be carried out, however, the process  500  moves on to state  515 . For example, in embodiments in which a phone number validation is carried out for all transactions that involve the offer of a promissory payment, the process moves on to state  515  for all such transactions. In state  515  the telephone number validation system  215  searches one or more phone validity databases  225  for data that may be relevant to the task of determining if the entered customer phone number  220  is valid or non-valid.  
     [0108] A phone number validity database  225  may be configured to store at least one of many different sets of information, as was described in greater detail with reference to FIGS. 2A, 2B,  2 C,  2 D, and  2 E. For example, a phone number validity database  225  may store phone numbers whose validity has been verified recently, together with a date when the phone numbers were last verified. A phone number validity database  225  may store non-valid phone numbers and associated dates when the non-valid numbers were last dialed. Such databases  225  may be purged regularly of records that are no longer up-to-date. In one embodiment, the process  500  may be configured to access a first database  225 , and if a desired set of information is not available from the first database, to access a second database, and so on.  
     [0109] The phone number validity database  225  accessed may be a database that is used primarily for purposes other than phone number validation but that comprises information useful for associating a customer wishing to make a payment with a phone number provided in conjunction with the payment transaction. The phone number validity database  225  may also or may alternatively be configured to store other information useful to a phone number validation process  500 , such as information about acceptable pairings of area codes and telephone number prefixes or correlations between area codes and postal zip codes.  
     [0110] As described with reference to FIG. 2A above, the database(s)  225  may be stored externally, such as databases maintained by a telephone service provider or other information source, and may be accessed using a communications network or other communications method.  
     [0111] When the process  500  has consulted the database(s)  225 , the process  500  moves to state  520  where the process  500  determines if the telephone number  220  or other desired information was found in the database(s)  225 . If the telephone number  220  or information was not found in a database  225 , then the process  500  moves on to state  525  where the POS device  200  dials the telephone number  220  and receives a transmitted tone. The process  500  moves on to state  530  where the telephone number validation system  215  determines if the transmitted tone indicates that the phone number  220  is valid or non-valid.  
     [0112] Returning to state  520 , if the telephone number  220  does appear in a database  225 , the process  500  may move to state  530  without the need to dial the number.  
     [0113] In state  530 , the telephone number validation system  215  determines if the phone number  220  is valid or non-valid. If the telephone number  220  is determined to be valid, the process  500  moves on to state  535 , where the transaction is permitted to proceed, and the phone number validation process  500  ends in state  540 .  
     [0114] If, in state  530 , the telephone number  220  is determined to be non-valid, the process  500  moves on to state  545 , where the telephone number validation system  215  determines if this is the first non-working phone number that has been processed for this transaction. The flowchart of FIG. 5 depicts an embodiment in which one additional telephone number  220  may be submitted after an original number is declared to be non-valid. However, other embodiments exist that allow for more than one additional number to be submitted or that do not allow for the submission of any additional numbers if a first number is found to be non-valid. These embodiments, although not explicitly depicted in FIG. 5, do encompass the spirit of the systems and methods described herein.  
     [0115] If the telephone number validation system  215  determines that this is not the first non-working phone number that has been processed for this transaction, the process moves to state  550  where the transaction is terminated  550  and the phone number validation process  500  ends in state  555 .  
     [0116] Returning to state  545 , if the telephone number validation system  215  determines that this is the first non-working phone number that has been processed for this transaction, then the process  500  moves to state  560 . In state  560 , another phone number  220  may now be entered, and the POS device  200  prompts the clerk to verify and/or to re-enter a telephone number  220  in order to make a second attempt at validating a phone number associated with the payment transaction. The clerk enters the current telephone number  220  in state  510 , and the process  500  proceeds as described earlier, with the phone number validation process  500  either allowing the transaction to proceed  535  or terminating it  550 .  
     [0117] Returning to state  530 , in some embodiments, when a determination regarding the validity or non-validity of the phone number  220  has been made in state  530 , an appropriate notation to record the phone number and associated determination may be made in a stored phone number validity database, as was described in greater detail with reference to FIGS. 2A and 2B above.  
     [0118]FIG. 6 is a flowchart that describes an embodiment of a process  600  to use phone number validation services offered by a third party in conjunction with a point-of-sale financial transaction. Phone number validation services, as depicted in FIG. 6, may comprise a validation determination for a given telephone number and/or may comprise a risk assessment that uses phone number validation information as a factor in a risk analysis for the transaction. The process  600  begins in state  605  in which the clerk initiates the payment transaction on the POS device  300 . Moving on to state  610 , the clerk enters a customer phone number  320  received in conjunction with the current transaction. In the embodiment shown in FIG. 6, in state  615 , the phone number validation system  315  checks the phone number validity database(s)  325  to see if recent information about the number being valid or non-valid is stored therein, or to check for other relevant data.  
     [0119] In state  620 , the process  600  determines if the phone number  320  in question appears in one or more validity databases  325 . If the number  320  does appear in one or more databases  325 , the process  600  determines in state  625  whether the stored information indicates that the number is valid or non-valid. If the database indicates that the number is valid, in some embodiments, there may be no need to call the phone number  320  or to request third party phone validation services  340 . The process  600  moves to state  630  where the transaction manager  305  may proceed with the transaction, and finally in state  640 , the process  600  ends.  
     [0120] Returning to state  625 , if the stored information indicates that the number  320  is non-valid, there may be no need to call the phone number  320  or to request third party phone validation services  340 . The process  600  moves to state  655  where the transaction manager  305  may terminate the transaction, and finally, in state  660 , the process  600  ends.  
     [0121] Returning to state  620 , if the phone number  320  is determined not to appear in the validity database(s)  325  checked, the process  600  moves to state  645  where phone number validation service is requested from a third party  340 . The third party phone number validation service  340  assesses the validity of the telephone number  320  in question, either by referring to one or more phone number validity databases  330  to which it has access, by dialing the phone number  320 , by a combination of the two, or by some other method to determine if the phone number  320  is valid or non-valid. Additionally or alternatively, the third party phone number validation service  340  may perform a risk assessment of the proposed transaction that may comprise calculating a risk score that uses phone number validation as a risk factor.  
     [0122] Moving from state  645  to state  650 , the third party service  340  sends its determination back to the POS device  300 , and in state  625 , based on the results received from the third party phone number validation service  340 , the process  600  either moves on to state  630 , where the transaction manager  305  may proceed with the transaction, if the number  320  has been determined to be valid and/or the risk of the transaction acceptable, or, if the number  320  is determined to be non-valid or the risk of the transaction too high, the process  600  moves on to state  655  where the process  600  terminates the transaction and ends in state  660 .  
     [0123] The embodiment described with reference to FIG. 6 is one in which the phone number validation system  315  consults one or more phone number validity databases  325  and, if sufficient information is not found in the databases  325  to make a determination of validity or non-validity, requests that the third party phone number validation service  340  check the validity of the phone number  320  received from the customer. In other embodiments, the phone number validation system  315  requests that the third party phone number validation service  340  checks the validity of the phone number  320  received from the customer without first attempting to locate the phone number  320  in one of the phone number validity databases  325 . In yet other embodiments, the capabilities for checking phone number validity by dialing the number  320 , by consulting appropriate databases  325  of information, and/or by requesting the services of a third party phone number validation service  340  may be combined and configured separately and in various combinations and selectively, as was has been described throughout this description.  
     [0124] Several embodiments of a phone number validation system have been described herein with particular applications associated with point-of-sale transactions. However, it is foreseen that the techniques described may have wider applications. As one example, situations in which it is desirable to assess the risk of a proposed agreement may appropriately incorporate the systems and methods described herein, whether the situation occurs at a point-of-sale or at some other location. Therefore, while certain embodiments of the systems and methods have been described, these embodiments have been presented by way of example only, and are not intended to limit the scope of the inventions to the specific forms, arrangement of parts, sequence of steps, or particular applications described and shown. Indeed, the novel methods and systems described herein may be embodied in a variety of other forms. For example, the functions fulfilled by the clerk in the embodiments described in FIGS.  4 - 6  may be carried out by an automated system rather than by an individual acting as a merchant representative. The phone number validation may be performed for a customer, as described herein, or for another type of entity desirous of participating in a transaction or for whom a confirmation of reliability is desirable. Furthermore, various omissions, substitutions and changes in the form of the methods and systems described herein may be made without departing from the spirit of the invention. The accompanying claims and their equivalents are intended to cover such forms or modifications as would fall within the scope and spirit of the invention.