Adverse Media Screening
See more than the official registries tell you
Vercly’s Adverse Media module automatically scans thousands of information sources worldwide, identifying warning signals about companies, beneficial owners and related persons. That means you make business decisions based on a complete picture of risk.
What is Adverse Media screening?
Definition
Adverse Media (analysis of negative media coverage) is a systematic review of press sources, investigative reports and databases for information pointing to legal, criminal, reputational or sanctions-related risk connected to the counterparty or its ownership structures. It isn’t a simple Google search – it’s a structured process with risk classification, results linked to the UBO structure, and audit-ready documentation prepared for regulatory inspection.
Regulatory requirement
FATF Recommendation 12 requires customer due diligence (CDD), including review of information from public sources. On the European side, upcoming changes by AMLA aim to harmonize Adverse Media requirements. For higher-risk clients – PEPs, high-risk jurisdictions, above-threshold transactions – Adverse Media analysis will become standard.
How does the Adverse Media module work?
Global scanning + local languages
Correlating Adverse Media with UBO
Risk classification + a CDD-ready report
What a sanctions list alone won’t catch?
| Sanctions lists alone | Vercly’s Adverse Media Screening |
|---|---|
| An entity appears on the radar only after an official regulatory decision | Risk signals visible long before a listing |
| Analysis limited to English-language sources | Scans local media, including Spanish, Russian, Arabic, Italian |
| Entity checked in isolation from its ownership structure | Automatic correlation with UBOs and related parties |
| Alert after listing – reacting after the fact | Alert at listing + early warning from media coverage |
| Compliance report requires manual analyst write-up | Ready-made CDD/EDD report with audit trail |
Who is our Adverse Media module for?
Obliged entities
Banks, credit unions, payment institutions, leasing companies, accounting firms, real estate agents. The EDD/Adverse Media obligation is becoming an industry standard, and upcoming EU AML legislation will cement it. Vercly automates this: one process instead of an hour-long media review, with a regulator-ready audit trail.
Enterprise companies
M&A, supplier selection, B2B client onboarding. For companies without a formal AML obligation, Adverse Media manages reputational and financial risk. One report can protect you from being associated with an entity facing criminal proceedings or sanctions – media due diligence every decision-maker understands.
Case study: Rosetta Gaming
Many AML specialists still check counterparties manually – typing the company name into Google or browsing individual news sites. The problem: most warning signals never make it onto the first page of search results.
Risky information may be found:
Manual analysis can’t cover such a wide range of sources within the time client onboarding requires. That’s why Adverse Media should be automated, not a one-off Google search.
In the Rosetta Gaming case, the official registries showed no irregularities at all.
Only the analysis of adverse media coverage revealed the beneficial owners’ links to activity subject to OFAC sanctions – an example showing Adverse Media screening can reveal risk far earlier than official databases.
Adverse Media is one module. But what if you need more data?
Vercly Adverse Media works standalone – as an addition to your existing compliance setup, or for one-off due diligence. As your needs grow, add sanctions verification, PEP screening, UBO verification, or build a full data flow in Vercly ONE. You choose only what you need.
Don’t wait for the press to report on your counterparty’s illegal activity
Not every risk shows up in KRS or CRBR. Find out how the Adverse Media module helps spot warning signals earlier and helps organizations build complete AML process documentation.
