Background Check Tips

Background check provider IntegraScan recently released a list of seven powerful tips to help small businesses perform background checks on applicants without hurting their budget.

• Verify the applicant's Social Security number - One of the most important factors is to verify the applicant's identity using a Social Security number. Identity theft is the fastest growing crime in America and an easy way for a criminal to hide their past.
• Verify the applicant's residential history - 98 percent of crimes are committed within a 50 mile radius of the offenders home address. Being armed with an address history tells you exactly what counties and states to check for existing records. You can save money by visiting the courthouses in the counties your applicant has lived in order to access public record information.
• Sex offender searches - You can use the FBI's Crimes Against Children Web site to check an applicants sex offender status for free.
• Don't just search criminal records - Also search bankruptcies, tax liens, judgments, municipal court and traffic court. They can go a long way in telling you about a person's character. A person with financial problems may not be the one to put in charge of the company till and a person with DUI charges is not someone you want driving kids around. This information can usually be accessed at the same courthouse criminal records are held at.
• Check state and federal records - Both types of convictions can be very serious. To save money you can run a preliminary scan of Federal records at http://pacer.psc.uscourts.gov/. If you get a name match you can dig deeper to see if it's your applicant or someone else with the same name. PACER charges you 8 cents per page and you will not be billed if your charges do not exceed $10 per year.
• Check coverage before you order a database scan - Many companies offer both instant database scans and hand searches. Although database scans are usually much cheaper, not every record is included in a database search. Some states and counties don't make this information available in electronic format. Make sure you check the database coverage against your applicant's address history.
• If you're a non-profit or work with children, you may be entitled to a discount - Many background check organizations offer large discounts or free searches to non-profits and youth organizations. Make sure you check with a perspective provider to see if you qualify.