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Managing Flagged Orders

Learn how to review, approve, and reject orders that have been flagged by the fraud prevention system.

  1. Open Alva Digital Downloads app
  2. Click Flagged Orders in the navigation menu
  1. Flagged Orders dashboard appears

Understanding the Flagged Orders Dashboard

Section titled “Understanding the Flagged Orders Dashboard”

Order Number

Example: #1045
Links to Shopify order details

Customer Name

Example: John Smith
Full name from order

Email

Example: john@example.com
Customer contact email

Risk Level

High | Medium | Low
Color-coded: Red | Yellow | Green

Date Ordered

Example: Jan 15, 2024, 3:42 PM
When order was placed

Status

Pending | Approved | Rejected
Current order state

Actions

[Approve] [Reject] [View Details]
Quick action buttons

Filter by Risk Level:

All | High Risk | Medium Risk | Low Risk

Filter by Status:

All | Pending | Approved | Rejected

Date Range:

Last 7 days | Last 30 days | Last 90 days | Custom range

Search:

Search by order number, customer name, or email

  1. Click on order number or “View Details” button
  2. Order detail panel opens

Order Details Section:

Basic Info:

Order Number: #1045
Customer: John Smith
Email: john@example.com
Date: January 15, 2024, 3:42 PM
Total: $49.99

Fraud Analysis:

Risk Level: High Risk
Shopify Score: 0.85 (0-1 scale, higher = riskier)
Recommendation: Review

Common Risk Indicators:

High Risk Signals:

  • ⚠️ IP address doesn’t match billing country
  • ⚠️ Multiple failed payment attempts
  • ⚠️ Email domain suspicious
  • ⚠️ Billing and shipping addresses don’t match
  • ⚠️ AVS (Address Verification System) mismatch
  • ⚠️ CVV check failed
  • ⚠️ Known fraud patterns detected

Medium Risk Signals:

  • ⚠️ New customer (first order)
  • ⚠️ High order value for customer history
  • ⚠️ International order to high-risk country
  • ⚠️ Unusual order time (middle of night)

Customer History:

Previous Orders: 0 (new customer)
or
Previous Orders: 5 (returning customer - lower risk)

IP Address:

IP: 192.168.1.1
Location: New York, USA
Matches billing country: Yes/No

Order Products:

Product: Digital Photography Course
Price: $49.99
Quantity: 1

Approve if:

  • ✅ Risk indicators explainable (e.g., customer traveling, VPN use)
  • ✅ Returning customer with good history
  • ✅ Customer contacted support proactively
  • ✅ Payment successful with verified card
  • ✅ Order details reasonable
  • ✅ Manual verification completed (if needed)

Method 1: Quick Approve from List

  1. Find order in Flagged Orders list
  2. Click Approve button
  3. Confirmation dialog appears
  1. Click Confirm
  2. Order approved ✅

Method 2: Approve from Detail View

  1. Open order details
  2. Review all information
  3. Click Approve Order button at top
  1. Optional: Add approval note
Note: Verified with customer via email - legitimate order
  1. Click Confirm Approval
  2. Order approved ✅

Automatic actions:

  1. Order status → Changed to “Approved”
  2. Download created → Secure download link generated
  3. Email sent (if enabled) → Customer receives download email
  4. Purchase record → Marked as approved in database
  5. Customer access → Can now download files

Timeline: Instant (within seconds)


If email notifications enabled:

Customer receives email:

Subject: Your Download is Ready!
Hi John,
Thank you for your patience. Your order #1045 has been
approved and is ready to download.
[Download Files Button]
This link expires in 60 days.
[Shop Name]

Reject if:

  • ❌ Clear fraud indicators (stolen card, fake email)
  • ❌ Customer unresponsive to verification requests
  • ❌ Order from known fraudster
  • ❌ Multiple high-risk signals
  • ❌ Payment disputed/chargeback
  • ❌ Unable to verify legitimacy

Method 1: Quick Reject from List

  1. Find order in Flagged Orders list
  2. Click Reject button
  3. Confirmation dialog appears
  1. Required: Enter rejection reason
Reason: High fraud risk - IP mismatch and failed CVV check
  1. Click Confirm Rejection
  2. Order rejected ❌

Method 2: Reject from Detail View

  1. Open order details
  2. Review all information
  3. Click Reject Order button at top
  1. Enter detailed rejection reason
Multiple fraud indicators:
- IP address from high-risk country
- Email domain suspicious
- Failed AVS check
- New customer with high-value order
  1. Optional: Choose to notify customer
[ ] Send rejection notification email
  1. Click Confirm Rejection
  2. Order rejected ❌

Automatic actions:

  1. Order status → Changed to “Rejected”
  2. No download created → Customer cannot access files
  3. Optional email → Rejection notification sent (if selected)
  4. Purchase record → Marked as rejected
  5. Refund → Manual refund in Shopify (if appropriate)

If rejection email enabled:

Subject: Order #1045 Update
Hi John,
We were unable to approve your order #1045 for security
reasons.
If you believe this is an error, please contact us at
support@shop.com with your order number.
[Shop Name]

Note: Be professional and brief. Don’t reveal specific fraud indicators.


After rejecting:

  1. Navigate to Shopify admin
  2. Find order #1045
  3. Click Refund
  4. Select full refund
  5. Add internal note: “Fraudulent order rejected”
  6. Process refund

Timeline: Refund processed in 5-10 business days (depends on payment processor)


Bulk Approve:

  1. Select multiple orders using checkboxes
  2. Click Bulk Actions dropdown
  3. Select Approve Selected
  1. Confirm bulk approval
  2. All selected orders approved ✅

Bulk Reject:

  1. Select multiple orders
  2. Click Bulk ActionsReject Selected
  3. Enter single rejection reason for all
Reason: Bulk fraudulent orders from same IP
  1. Confirm bulk rejection
  2. All selected orders rejected ❌

When to contact:

  • Medium risk with unclear indicators
  • New customer with high-value order
  • Unusual but potentially legitimate order
  • Customer proactively reached out

Subject: Order #1045 Verification
Hi John,
Thank you for your order #1045!
For security purposes, we need to verify a few details:
1. Confirm this email address is correct
2. Confirm billing address: 123 Main St, New York, NY
3. Confirm you authorized this purchase
Please reply to this email to confirm.
Expected response time: 24 hours
[Shop Name]
support@shop.com

In order notes:

  1. Open order detail
  2. Scroll to Notes section
  3. Add note:
Jan 15, 3:50 PM - Sent verification email
Jan 15, 4:15 PM - Customer replied, verified details
Jan 15, 4:20 PM - Approved order

Scenario 1: New Customer, High-Value Order

Section titled “Scenario 1: New Customer, High-Value Order”

Details:

Customer: First-time buyer
Order value: $150
Risk: Medium
Indicators: New customer, high value

Action:

  1. Send verification email
  2. Wait for response (24 hours)
  3. If verified → Approve
  4. If no response → Reject and refund

Details:

Customer: Returning customer (5 previous orders)
Risk: Medium
Indicators: IP location doesn't match billing country

Action:

  1. Check customer history (good history = lower risk)
  2. Send quick verification email
  3. Usually safe to approve for returning customers
  4. Approve after brief verification

Details:

Risk: High
Indicators:
- Failed CVV check
- AVS mismatch
- Suspicious email domain
- First-time customer

Action:

  1. Do NOT approve without verification
  2. Attempt customer contact
  3. If unresponsive in 24 hours → Reject
  4. Process refund
  5. Report to Shopify if needed

Scenario 4: Customer Proactively Contacted

Section titled “Scenario 4: Customer Proactively Contacted”

Details:

Customer emailed: "I just placed order #1045, let me know when files are ready!"
Risk: Medium (flagged for review)

Action:

  1. Proactive communication = good sign
  2. Verify email matches order email
  3. Safe to approve (customer engagement indicates legitimacy)
  4. Approve and respond to customer

Issue: Approved Order, Customer Didn’t Receive Email

Section titled “Issue: Approved Order, Customer Didn’t Receive Email”

Check:

  1. Email notifications enabled in Settings
  2. Email provider configured correctly
  3. Check Email Logs for send status
  4. Verify customer email address
  5. Check customer’s spam folder

Solution:

  1. Resend email manually from order details
  2. Or provide download link directly via support

Issue: Cannot Find Order in Flagged Orders

Section titled “Issue: Cannot Find Order in Flagged Orders”

Possible causes:

  1. Order was auto-approved (low risk)
  2. Fraud prevention not enabled when order placed
  3. Order older than current filter date range
  4. Wrong shop selected (if managing multiple)

Solution:

  1. Adjust date range filter
  2. Check “All Orders” view
  3. Search by order number in Shopify admin

Issue: Accidentally Rejected Legitimate Order

Section titled “Issue: Accidentally Rejected Legitimate Order”

Solution:

  1. Re-open order in Flagged Orders
  2. Change status from Rejected to Approved
  3. Click Re-approve Order button
  4. Download link created
  5. Email sent to customer
  6. Contact customer to apologize and provide link

Steps:

  1. Review rejection reason in order notes
  2. Ask customer to provide verification
  3. If verified legitimate → Re-approve
  4. If still suspicious → Keep rejected, explain professionally
  5. Process refund if appropriate

Timing:

  • Check Flagged Orders 2-3 times daily
  • Respond within 1-2 hours (business hours)
  • Don’t leave customers waiting overnight

Why: Delayed delivery impacts customer satisfaction


For every order:

  • Add note explaining approval/rejection
  • Record verification steps taken
  • Note communication with customer
  • Track patterns

Benefits:

  • Consistency
  • Training material
  • Dispute resolution
  • Audit trail

Create decision criteria:

Auto-approve if:

  • Returning customer (3+ orders)
  • Risk level: Low
  • No major red flags

Verify if:

  • New customer with medium risk
  • High-value order
  • Minor inconsistencies

Reject if:

  • Multiple high-risk indicators
  • Failed verification
  • Known fraud patterns

With customers:

  • Be polite and professional
  • Don’t reveal fraud detection methods
  • Explain delays briefly (“security review”)
  • Apologize for inconvenience
  • Provide clear next steps

Bad:

"Your order looks fraudulent, we're investigating your IP address."

Good:

"We're reviewing your order for security purposes and will
have it approved shortly. Thank you for your patience!"

Track:

  • Common fraud indicators in your niche
  • False positive patterns
  • Legitimate reasons for flags
  • Seasonal fraud trends

Adjust:

  • Refine approval criteria
  • Update team training
  • Modify fraud prevention settings

For faster processing:

A - Approve selected order
R - Reject selected order
V - View order details
N - Add note
↑/↓ - Navigate orders
Enter - Open selected order
Esc - Close detail view

Access:

  1. Flagged Orders page
  2. Click Export Report button
  3. Select date range
  4. Download CSV

Report includes:

  • Order number
  • Customer name/email
  • Risk level
  • Status (approved/rejected)
  • Date flagged
  • Date reviewed
  • Reviewer action
  • Notes

Weekly review:

  • Total orders flagged
  • Approval rate
  • Rejection rate
  • Average review time
  • False positive rate
  • Customer complaints