Not all background checks are the same. There are actually four different types of background checks available to individuals–national, federal, state, and county. Information found with one type of check is not always found on other checks, which means if you aren’t receiving comprehensive background checks from all four sources, you may not be getting the complete picture.
Here are some things to keep in mind when it comes to the different types of background checks available to you:
National Checks – These cover a collection of nationwide databases. This search casts a wide net for potential records and serves as a guide to what other types of criminal checks need to be performed.
Federal Checks – These checks are used only to find criminal records in Federal jurisdictions. This search does not cover FBI or Department of Justice searches as they can only be performed by law enforcement agencies and private industries authorized by law. This type of search is especially important for industries were fraud or embezzlement crimes are issues.
State Checks – This is a search of the statewide criminal database to help you find any criminal record information in a candidate’s state, outside of their home county. It is important to remember that not all counties report to state databases, which means a county check might still be necessary for your candidate.
County Checks – The county level is where most records occur, which means this is one of the most useful criminal checks you can have performed. This search deals with the candidate’s home county, or any other counties in which they might have lived, to find any criminal records that might come up.
