> ## Documentation Index
> Fetch the complete documentation index at: https://stytch.com/docs/llms.txt
> Use this file to discover all available pages before exploring further.

# Override verdict reasons

> Customizing the action associated with a verdict reason.

## Overview

For every fingerprint lookup, Device Fingerprinting recommends a specific [verdict action](/fraud-risk/device-fingerprinting/verdict/overview). You can override the default action to customize the recommendations based on your application and traffic.

* This is most useful for customizing [Protected Auth](/fraud-risk/device-fingerprinting/protected-auth) decisioning.
* If you are directly integrating with the Device Fingerprinting API, you can also use verdict reason overrides to change decisioning logic without needing to write and deploy new backend code.

### Example

The `VIRTUAL_MACHINE` warning flag results in a `CHALLENGE` by default,
but you might expect many legitimate users to be using an enterprise browser (that runs in a virtual machine). You can override verdict reasons so that `VIRTUAL_MACHINE` maps to an `ALLOW` verdict instead.

<Note>
  See [Reference guides](/fraud-risk/development/warning-flags) for a full list of all verdict reasons or use the [Get Verdict Reasons endpoint](/api-reference/fraud/api/get-verdict-reasons).
</Note>

***

## Prerequisites

* An existing Stytch project in the [Dashboard](https://stytch.com/dashboard).
* The `project_id` and `secret` for your project's Test environment. These can be found under your project's *Project ID & API keys* section in the [Dashboard](https://www.stytch.com/dashboard).
* Device Fingerprinting [enabled for your project](https://stytch.com/dashboard/dfp-rules).
  * If you don't have Device Fingerprinting enabled, you can [request access here](https://offers.stytch.com/dfp-30-day-trial?utm_source=stytch_docs\&utm_medium=direct\&utm_content=dfp_30_day_trial).

## Steps

<Steps>
  <Step title="Select which verdict reason to override">
    You will need the verdict reason and action to associate with it.

    * See [Reference guides](/fraud-risk/development/overview) for warning flags (verdict reasons).
    * Or use the [Get Verdict Reasons endpoint](/api-reference/fraud/api/get-verdict-reasons).

    For the chosen verdict reason, you can decide the new action: `ALLOW`, `BLOCK`, or `CHALLENGE`.
  </Step>

  <Step title="Call Set Verdict Reason Override">
    Call the [Set Verdict Reason Override](/api-reference/fraud/api/set-verdict-reason-override) endpoint:

    ```bash theme={null}
    curl --request POST \
      --url https://telemetry.stytch.com/v1/verdict_reasons/override \
      -u '${projectId}:${secret}' \
      -H 'Content-Type: application/json' \
      --data '{
          "verdict_reason": "VIRTUAL_MACHINE",
          "override_action": "ALLOW",
          "description": "Allow instead of challenge VMs because we expect lots of legitimate VM users"
      }'
    ```

    This example sets `VIRTUAL_MACHINE` to `ALLOW` instead of the default reason.
  </Step>

  <Step title="Review the new override">
    You can use the [Get Verdict Reasons endpoint](/api-reference/fraud/api/get-verdict-reasons) to confirm your change:

    ```bash theme={null}
    curl --request POST \
      --url https://telemetry.stytch.com/v1/verdict_reasons/list \
      -u '${projectId}:${secret}' \
      -H 'Content-Type: application/json' \
      -d '{}'
    ```

    The resulting list will contain an entry showing the override for `VIRTUAL_MACHINE`:

    ```json theme={null}
    {
        "verdict_reason_overrides": [
            # ...
            {
                "verdict_reason": "VIRTUAL_MACHINE",
                "default_action": "CHALLENGE",
                "override_action": "ALLOW",
                "override_created_at": "2025-01-02T03:04:05Z",
                "description": "Allow instead of challenge VMs because we expect lots of legitimate VM users"
            }
        ]
    }
    ```

    <Note>
      The response also includes `verdict.verdict_reason_overrides` that contains information about overrides applied to a specific lookup.
    </Note>
  </Step>

  <Step title="Delete the override">
    To delete the override, call the [Set Verdict Reason Override endpoint](/api-reference/fraud/api/set-verdict-reason-override) with an action of `NONE`:

    ```bash theme={null}
    curl --request POST \
      --url https://telemetry.stytch.com/v1/verdict_reasons/override \
      -u '${projectId}:${secret}' \
      -H 'Content-Type: application/json' \
      --data '{
          "verdict_reason": "VIRTUAL_MACHINE",
          "override_action": "NONE"
      }'
    ```
  </Step>
</Steps>