Many background screening firms offer a National Criminal, Nationwide Criminal, or even an instant criminal search product. They are quick and inexpensive, however, there are considerations to using such products.
What is a National/Nationwide Criminal Search?
A powerful, virtually instant multi-jurisdictional search of hundreds of millions of state and county criminal records. This database is compiled from counties, the Department of Corrections (DOC), the Administration of the Court (AOC), and other records from across the country. This is an effective tool for discovering additional jurisdictions where criminal offenses may have occurred outside of an applicant’s indicated residential and employment address history.
So, what are the potential problems?
First is the name. “National” or “Nationwide” might give one the impression that it covers all criminal records in the country. This is incorrect. There is NO single source of ALL criminal records in the US, not even the FBI Criminal Justice Information Services (CJIS) in West Virginia which operates such systems as the National Crime Information Center (NCIC), the National Instant Criminal Background Check System (NICS) used for firearms purchases, Next Generation Identification (NGI), Combined DNA Index System (CODIS) and others. TV and movies would have people believe with a few keystrokes one can know everything about a particular person. Not every criminal record makes it to CJIS and as one study showed, the FBI records did not contain up-to-date dispositions on 50% of its records.
At Safe-Screen, we too offer a criminal database search of one of the most accurate products available. However, we call it a Multijurisdictional Criminal Database Search to be more accurate and transparent with our clients. It is used as a “pointer” to cover a wide swath of the country, almost instantly and inexpensively.
Relying on just the “National” criminal database search. Some background check vendors do this; however, a private database does not meet the requirement to establish and follow “reasonable procedures to assure maximum possible accuracy of the information concerning the individual about whom the report relates” as contained in Section 613 of the Fair Credit Reporting Act (FCRA). At Safe-Screen, we use the Multijurisdictional Criminal Database Search as a lead or pointer. When records are located, we follow up directly with the original source of the information, the court in which charges were filed, and adjudicated. This is all part of our philosophy of Keeping You Safe.
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