Answer

What is meant by background check?

Background screens (or checks) are a way for employers to verify information about an applicant and/or current employee, getting a comprehensive understanding of who they are to ensure they make a safe hire. For many employers, a background screen is usually conducted as a simple pre-employment process, but depending on the industry and position they can become quite complex. Background screens can typically include employment/education verification, driving records, credit reports, or even social media in some cases. When combining products to create a custom program, employers can better maintain compliance and meet industry standards.

Background Check related

Why are background checks important?

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.

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.

Instant background checks are more commonly known as “national criminal database searches” and provide general information pulled from a commercially available database. Although they have a quick return, the information is not corroborated against any official county court record and can provide inaccurate information as it’s not derived from a verified source. Comprehensive background checks are all-encompassing and compiled from a variety of sources, including local law enforcement, statewide criminal record repositories, departments of corrections, state parole and probation records, local public records sources, etc. This prevents mistaken identity matches that sometimes occur with instant checks when a person with the same name as the applicant has hits on their record. Employers must be cautious when choosing a background check process because choosing an instant check over a comprehensive check could lead to fines and lawsuits if they don’t abide by the guidelines set forth under the Fair Credit Reporting Act (FCRA).