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Treasury Watchdog Faults SAR Data Quality
By Brian Monroe
printNearly 60 percent of the suspicious activity reports filed in fiscal 2006 had missing, incorrect or incomplete data in fields critical to law enforcement agencies, according to a federal watchdog report. Institutions often submitted the forms, known as SARs, without proper tax identification numbers, addresses and names, according to the U.S. Treasury Department's Office of Inspector General (OIG). The OIG completed its audit of SAR filings in March 2008 but delayed its release because of its obligations to report on failed financial institutions, the agency said. Money services businesses (MSBs) had the most problematic filings, with 88 percent of SARs...
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