Identify the exact legal entity
Connect a trading name to the relevant registration number and register.
Caution: A similar name may refer to another company.
Open editorial reference · 2026
Digital verification matrix.
A structured starting point for checking an identity, domain, message, review, piece of evidence or decision. Each check states its useful question and the conclusion it cannot support alone.
How to read it
Choose the checks that answer the real question.
IIS editorial reference. Priorities 1 to 3 indicate a usual reading order, not a universal risk score. Adapt each check to scope, applicable law and the facts.
Priority 1 covers basic identity, destination or evidence checks; 2 helps test context and attribution; 3 supports follow-up. A priority number never replaces an assessment of harm.
Interactive reference
Explore 36 checks in six categories.
Results: 36
Confirm the correspondent’s role
Return to an official source or channel separate from the received message.
Caution: A public profile does not prove who controls the account.
Rule out namesakes
Compare several matching identifiers before attribution.
Caution: Name and city alone are insufficient.
Qualify control relationships
Separate declared ownership, directorship and operational control.
Caution: A shared address does not prove common management.
Check the registrable domain
Read the main domain before subdomains and paths.
Caution: A padlock does not confirm site identity.
Date the observed certificate
Record issuance, covered names and observation time.
Caution: An old certificate does not prove a current service.
Avoid attribution by shared hosting
Check whether an address or provider is shared.
Caution: Technical proximity does not establish ownership.
Spot a lookalike domain
Compare spelling, context and official channels.
Caution: Similarity alone does not prove fraud.
Compare display name and actual sender domain
Inspect the full address without replying to the message.
Caution: The visible name can be chosen freely.
Read a link destination
Identify the main domain and redirects before visiting.
Caution: Link text can hide another destination.
Call back using an independent number
Use a previously known or officially published contact.
Caution: The number in a doubtful message may be controlled by its sender.
Classify a sensitive request
Separate payment, secrets, installation and document sharing.
Caution: Claimed urgency is no substitute for confirmation.
Compare reviews with a baseline
Account for seasonality, volume and service incidents.
Caution: A single spike does not establish a campaign.
Find the original claim
Separate the original source from republications.
Caution: Ten copies are not ten confirmations.
Test relay independence
Compare timing, wording and distribution links.
Caution: Simultaneous repetition may be spontaneous.
Choose a response channel
Address verifiable facts where a correction will help.
Caution: An overly broad response can amplify marginal content.
Preserve URL and source
Keep the full address and apparent publisher.
Caution: A context-free screenshot cannot establish origin.
Date observation and time zone
Separate publication, consultation and modification.
Caution: A capture date is not the date of the event depicted.
Preserve original and working copy
Limit transformations and record necessary ones.
Caution: A hash alone does not prove initial authenticity.
Mark unknown timeline intervals
Show what was not observed between events.
Caution: No trace is not proof of absence.
Assign a confidence level
Separate established, probable, possible and unknown with reasons.
Caution: Do not turn a judgement into an invented percentage.
Connect the signal to impact
Describe plausible consequence, urgency and people affected.
Caution: A dramatic signal is not always the highest priority.
Assign an action owner
Link measure, deadline and evidence of correction.
Caution: An ownerless recommendation is difficult to execute.
Set a review trigger
Revisit after a change in asset, actor or context.
Caution: A dated finding does not remain valid indefinitely.
Verify the claimed mandate
Separate published role, signing authority and permission for this request.
Caution: A real job title does not automatically authorise action for the entity.
Find an official contact route
Obtain details from a known site or register independently of the message.
Caution: A contact card copied into the message is not an independent channel.
Time-stamp an observed DNS configuration
Record public responses and time before linking a domain to a service.
Caution: Current DNS answers may not describe the state when the event happened.
Compare archived versions
Identify when a page or service changed, while recording archive gaps.
Caution: No archive does not prove no page existed on that date.
Assess an unexpected attachment
Compare sender, request and format with the expected process without running the file.
Caution: A familiar filename or visible extension may conceal the actual content.
Explain a change of channel
Check why a conversation moves from a known channel to a new chat service or URL.
Caution: A switch may be legitimate but still needs independent confirmation.
Identify a paid ad’s origin
Preserve the sponsored creative, displayed advertiser and final destination.
Caution: A displayed advertiser name does not prove the brand owner approved it.
Find the earliest available media version
Compare the earliest traceable post with later crops and captions.
Caution: The earliest version found may still be a later repost.
Normalise times and zones
Keep the original time and zone before building a shared timeline.
Caution: Silent conversion can reverse the apparent event order.
Log evidence transformations
Record export, copy, conversion, redaction and responsible person for each item.
Caution: A hash calculated after conversion does not describe the original.
Test an alternative explanation
State a plausible alternative and the observation that would distinguish it.
Caution: One coherent story can conceal weak attribution.
Set a review stopping rule
Define what is enough to decide, what remains unknown and when to reopen the case.
Caution: Searching without a precise question can add data without improving the decision.
No check matches these filters.
Put it to work
Guides applying these checks.
Verify a job offer and recruiterIdentity and channels →
Assess online reviewsReputation and evidence →
Verify a fundraising appealEntity and payment →
FAQ
Using the matrix responsibly.
Is this a risk score?
No. Priorities describe a usual order of attention, not a universal score. The actual impact and urgency depend on the case.
Must all 36 checks be performed?
No. Select the checks relevant to the decision and record which ones were not applicable or could not be completed.
Can the dataset be reused?
The CSV and JSON files can be reused with attribution to IIS and preservation of their cautions and version date.
Provenance, version and reuse
IIS editorial reference, not a statistical dataset. Recommendations and scores are case-dependent reference points, not scientifically validated measurements.
Dataset version: . Stable record IDs connect the bilingual JSON and CSV exports. Keep the caveats with each definition or recommendation.