Faq Categories: Background Checks

A background screen is valid for two years and we recommend re-screening afterward. However, we also offer a continuous monitoring service, which is a proactive approach in between screenings. Depending on the industry, type of positions being screened for and the role of background checks within the organization, a process for ongoing or periodic screening may be a suitable approach.

No, we can conduct background screening for organizations in nearly every industry. What’s more important is that we always take the time to understand your needs before proposing a solution. Background screens can be quite different from company to company and we want you to know exactly what you are getting so you will have the confidence that the program is working as you expect.

A background check is the process of investigating an individual’s background based on criteria determined by their employer (prospective or current) or Customer contracted partner. This check may include employment, criminal records, motor vehicle and license record checks. Each organization requesting the background should understand what specific searches are being requested and share that effectively with their applicants.

There are some proprietary databases of criminal histories which collect information on a nationwide basis from many different sources and these are often called a “national criminal database.” These databases contain criminal, arrest, warrant, sex offender and other global watches, sanctions and government listings. These are not considered primary source records and the content of such databases vary across consumer reporting agencies. There is no actual publicly maintained “national” criminal database that covers all jurisdictions. Further, their content is often known to be incomplete or not as up to date as a primary record search. In compliance with the FCRA, we do send notices when information is being reported from such a database and we also verify the information at the primary source before reporting any details to Customers.

• County searches are very detailed and specific felony and misdemeanor searches in a courthouse of the county where the applicant currently, or previously, resided. While a national criminal database can be “an inch deep and a mile wide”, a county courthouse search is “a mile deep and an inch wide.”
• A federal criminal search covers federal crimes that are federally prosecuted and typically not included in either county or statewide criminal checks. This search identifies possible convictions heard in the US District Courts, Bankruptcy Courts and Courts of Appeals, as well as Supreme Court and three National Courts. Federal conviction records are often returned with limited identifiers such as “Name Match Only” so it may be more difficult to match to the applicant when date of birth, address, or SSN are not reported.
• State repository databases are meant to serve as an aggregation of county-level records within a given state. Unfortunately, these are normally less complete and not all states offer a comprehensive search. By comprehensive, we are looking for all felony and misdemeanor information for at least a seven-year period. The state repositories rely on the various agencies to report information and may not include as much detail as the county level searches as not all courts participate and not all information from participating counties is reported in real-time.

Yes, we can integrate with any ATS or HRIS system. Background checks can be initiated through this process as well as passing results back to the ATS to eliminate multiple data entry points.

This is a decision that will be made during the onboarding stage but may include prospective employees, contracted employees and/or current employees undergoing a promotion or responsibility change.