False non-match

Definition
A false nonmatch occurs when a system rejects a valid identity.

Overview
In verification and positive identification systems, people can be denied access to some facility or resource as the result of a system’s failure to make a correct match. In negative identification systems, the result of a false nonmatch may be that a person is granted access to resources to which she should be denied. For example, if a person who has enrolled in a public benefits program under another identity is not correctly matched, she will succeed in gaining fraudulent access to benefits.