Overview

You may have noticed that WealthEngine no longer flags individuals as “Deceased” This change is due to updated U.S. regulations that restrict access to death records for commercial use. Here's a breakdown of what changed, why it matters, and how Altrata now handles inactive profiles.

What Changed?

Previously, WealthEngine used the Social Security Death Index (SSDI)—a public data source maintained by the U.S. government—to identify deceased individuals. We compared our profiles against SSDI records and flagged matches accordingly.

However, due to changes in U.S. laws, commercial entities like Altrata are no longer permitted to access newly added death records. These restrictions were introduced to help prevent fraud and identity theft, which were common risks associated with open access to such sensitive data.

Who Can Still Access Death Records?

Access is now limited to organizations that can demonstrate a legitimate, non-commercial need, such as:

  • Government agencies
  • Regulatory bodies
  • Fraud prevention teams
  • Medical researchers
  • Background screening services

While private individuals may still request older records for genealogical research, companies like Altrata cannot use these records for commercial purposes.

What About Vendors Who Still Sell This Data?

Some vendors claim to offer comprehensive death data, but this is often unreliable or misleading. Altrata does not engage with vendors who provide deceased data and strongly advises against trusting their data quality 

How Does Altrata Handle Inactive Profiles Now?

Instead of relying on death records, we now manage inactive profiles through a data inactivity policy:

  • If we receive no data updates from any of our core sources for two consecutive years, we consider the profile inactive and remove it.
  • This includes individuals who may be deceased, have opted out of data sharing, moved abroad, or otherwise eliminated their digital footprint.

Importantly, we do not specify why a profile was removed, as we cannot verify the reason with certainty.

Why Can’t You Just Flag Someone as Deceased?

We only make changes to profiles when we can externally verify the information. Without a reliable and legal source confirming a person’s death, we cannot confidently flag them as deceased.

If a profile is still visible in WealthEngine, it means at least one data vendor is still sending us updates about that individual. We do notify vendors when we suspect a person may be deceased, but they may not be able to act on that information.

Best Practices for Clients

To maintain data accuracy in your own workflows:

  • Use the “Deceased” flag in WealthEngine when applicable.
  • Remove individuals you know to be deceased from your screening files going forward.

Final Note

The SSDI was never a complete record of all deaths in the U.S.—reporting varies by state and agency. Any vendor claiming to offer a perfect solution could be misrepresenting their capabilities or manually searching platforms such as Google. This is tedious and usually not all encompassing for larger data files.


If you have further questions or need help managing your screening files, please contact our support team. Contact Us