A method and system for efficiently handling the acquisition of serial number information from products at, for example, a point of sale system in a retail store or the like utilizes a serial number mask (4) to generically define attributes of a serial number format. The serial number mask characterizes the serial number format and includes at least a first character that describes variables of the serial number format. With this method and system, an electronic registration system can be used to reduce or prevent improper returns of consumer products.