Free Background checks are a way to show that people are being honest with you and that they do not have a too colorful past. The basic check known as a criminal record check will show whether the person in question, let’s call them an applicant in this instance, has any criminal convictions, irrespective of whether or not they were eventually convicted. Non-convictions will be reported if they happened any time in the seven years preceding the request. This is deemed as a reasonable time as some non-convictions can turn to convictions at a much later date.
Convictions obviously speak for themselves and can include any level of crime.
If you decided to hire someone then they would go further and include employment records, military records and financial information into the search. What will actually show up on the applicant’s search will depend upon two things.
Firstly, the scope of the check which will depend on why the check is being done and by whom. Private investigators are able to locate old records from previous names or ones that have been purged from the system. They will also be able to get access to non-convictions that are older than the seven-year period. They will look through old newspaper archives or employment registers and they often have connections that can help them locate documents.
The applicant’s personal details can be checked if required or requested. This can involve finding their maiden names or previous names if they have had them. Also, past addresses. Private investigators or companies that specialize in background checks can access marriage records, which can then lead them to locate joint properties and details of previous spouses. All of which can give you an insight into a person. They can also locate phone numbers connected to an individual. A lot of phone numbers or phones for no apparent legal reason can be a sign of illicit activity. They can also ascertain friends that these people have and any known associates.
Social media checks are something that is common these days and we can gain a massive insight into a person’s character and connections from social media. This is why we have to be so careful. Future employers, banking staff in fact anyone can have a look at our Facebook profile and decide what they think of us from that snapshot of our lives. It isn’t uncommon for a specialist to find evidence of fraud, drug use or infidelity online, none of which exactly promote your character to a new employer.
One of the most falsified areas of information when applying for a new job is previous job history. A job history is an insight into company loyalty. An applicant can make their job sound more important than it was and include lots of tasks that they didn’t actually do, they can also state a false reason for leaving. They can even lie by omission, leaving one of the jobs out because something bad happened whilst they were working there. All of this can be checked so the best policy is not to lie.