DISA is a member of the National Association of Professional Background Screeners (NAPBS) and can help ensure that your hiring practices are consistent and compliant with your industry needs. DISA provides a comprehensive line of background check services, which are fully automated and can easily be combined with a drug and alcohol testing program or other service offerings.

Background checks often include a criminal history search at a minimum. However, depending upon the nature of the job, for persons in more sensitive, high-level positions or those dealing with vulnerable populations, it may also include investigation of credit reports, sanctions checks, sex offender checks, and/or driving history. Background checks also may include verification of previous employment, education, professional licenses, and personal or professional references.

An employer must first establish a background check policy with their company. Once implemented, they can begin performing background checks, usually for pre-employment, but sometimes ongoing depending on the position. According to the Fair Credit Reporting Act (FCRA) § 604 – 15 U.S.C. § 1681b, employers are required to provide applicants with a separate written disclosure, which advises that a consumer report may be obtained for employment purposes. The document must consist solely of the disclosure as a stand-alone document. Additionally, the employer also must obtain the applicant’s written consent to order the background check.

Not all background checks are the same and those quicker, cheaper screenings you come across online won’t offer the same in-depth research for an applicant. Most employers use comprehensive background checks, like DISA’s, to ensure accuracy and prevent any mix-ups with aliases.

A criminal history check reveals detailed information regarding an individual’s county, state, and federal criminal history. Each record varies by the type of information it searches for and the results that are returned.

There are two different types of background checks; instant and comprehensive. Instant background checks, also known as “national criminal database searches” provide general information pulled from a commercially available database. These searches aren’t corroborated against any official county court record. Although they are quick, they can often return with error-filled information, since it’s not derived from a verified source. Comprehensive background checks, like DISA’s, involve multiple National Association of Professional Background Screeners (NAPBS) FCRA certified employees confirming that all information aligns with the person who is being checked. These individuals also must hold a private investigator license in order to legally be able to research and verify information about the applicant. This process verifies that the information is accurate and is not information from an alias with the same name as the applicant being screened.

Since each background check can be customized to meet the needs of the employer, job position, and state laws, questions can vary according to what is included in the check. For example, if the employer chose to include an education verification, then the candidate would be asked questions regarding what school they attended, the years they attended, when they graduated, what degrees (if any) they acquired, etc.

It’s important that employers maintain standards when making hiring decisions to keep their workplace safer while ensuring the quality of employee matches their requirements. If an applicant has anything to hide, they will most likely not want to apply to a position that requires a background check. When implementing employment screening procedures, such as a background check, employers will most likely see an improvement in the quality of the applicants that apply.