Background Check News

In the beginning processes of hiring a new employee, companies base their applicant pool on certain credentials such as experience, education and personality. These are the core principals that are important in candidates however they are not the only thing that are needed to be considered. A major trait that an employer should look into is criminal history but with focuses on other aspects it is easy to see why this may be overlooked. Finding the perfect applicant not only need to possess the correct job requirements but they also need to be someone who is trustworthy and free of criminal records that could reflect poorly on the company.

According to the Wall Street Journal, small businesses are particularly vulnerable to embezzlement and other kinds of employee theft because they lack the checks and balances of big corporations (By: Colleen Debaise 02/07/2010). Conducting a criminal history background investigation on applicants is something that is generally quick, easy and cost effective.

As important and overlooked as this is, spending anywhere from $20.00 to $150.00 will provide you with a comprehensive criminal history check on an applicant to weed them out and save your company in the future.

New advances in computer forensics and special designated tasks forces have been able to crack down on child pornography cases. In the recent months/year more and more of these cases have come to light and it is getting harder for these types of criminals to hide. With an appropriate background investigation these individuals can be avoided in your hiring process.

Hiring a pedophile could be disastrous to your company and can cause irreparable damages. In one recent case, U.S. Immigrations and Customs Enforcement agents arrested a man who reportedly had explicit images of young boys engaging in sexual activity on his home computer. This individual had been employed with a local YMCA for months prior to this arrest and in direct unsupervised contact with children. It is not know yet if this individual has had prior criminal convictions but it is certain now that any future employers should catch this record.

Many times after cases like this the offenders attempt to move away from their issues and find employment in other states/counties. This is why it is important to have an actual individual search for records instead of a data source provider searching in the applicant’s most recent area of residence. When screening prospective employees it is important to search for records in the area that the applicant has resided the longest and pay attention to multiple associated residences and recent moves.