How to spot an edited bank statement

People who edit a statement usually change one number: a deposit, a balance or a date. A bank statement is a chain of arithmetic, so one changed number tends to leave a trace somewhere else. These four checks look for that trace.

1. Does the running balance add up?

Each row's balance should equal the previous balance, plus credits, minus debits. If a deposit was inflated but the balance column was left alone, or the other way round, the chain breaks at that row. This is the strongest check, and it is simple to do by hand on a short statement.

2. Does the closing balance match the last row?

The closing balance in the summary should equal the balance on the last transaction. Editors often fix the transactions and forget the summary, or the reverse.

3. Are the dates in order?

Transactions are listed in date order. A row that jumps backwards or sits outside the statement period deserves a question.

4. What do the file properties say?

A PDF records the program that created it and when it was last changed. Statements exported by a bank's system do not normally come from a word processor or an image editor, and they are not normally modified weeks after they were created. Files saved more than once can also carry traces of earlier versions. These properties can be missing or changed, so treat them as a hint and not as proof.

What a flag does and does not mean

A flag means something is worth asking about. Banks do produce odd statements, and some banks reorder rows or round figures. A clean result does not prove a statement is genuine either. If a number matters to your decision, ask the applicant for an explanation or ask the bank to confirm it.

Ledgerproof runs checks 1 to 4 on a text-based PDF in your browser and marks the rows involved. Try it on a statement or see the questions and answers.