Conducting Internet Background Checks on New Hires

When making hiring decisions, the more information you have about potential employees the better. Background checks provide an excellent way to verify that the candidates you want to hire are really the people they purport to be. The Internet makes these checks faster and easier, but it pays to be aware of the risks and legal landmines that accompany online background searches.

In spite of the voluminous amount of information available online and through paid screening services, employers still find that it helps to talk to a human being. Usually candidates are required to provide references or contact information for previous employers, and a phone call can still be the best way to verify information such as credentials, degrees, and experience, not to mention intangibles such as work ethics and professional demeanor. But if an employer wants documented evidence and doesn’t want to take any extra time, the Internet is a convenient resource for some verification.

What's Online

Online search can be an important tool for basic screening of a job applicant. While you can’t access information covered by privacy laws, other information is easy to find. For instance, you cannot access college transcripts without permission, but you can verify college attendance by doing a basic online search. Most of the time you need only type in the institution, year, and name of the candidate and a match should pop up if there are any records of the candidate’s involvement there. Ditto if the candidate says he or she won an important award. Type in the name, date, award, and any local news source, even if it is the school newspaper, and you should generate confirmation. If you still have serious doubts about the veracity of a claim, the only way to verify it is to contact provided references or ask to see a diploma.

In some states, you can investigate some criminal and civil records online by checking candidates’ names against judicial records in their home state along with neighboring states. State motor vehicle departments differ on what employers may request; some states post court actions on a public online database.

Credit checks must be requested from one of the three nationally recognized reporting agencies: Experian, Equifax, or TransUnion. By law, this requires a candidate’s consent. Social networks, such as Facebook, and even general Google searches can also be helpful in cross-referencing and verifying information about a candidate. They can provide confirmation that someone really did study French in Paris or was in the ROTC program in college. Perhaps even more important, their personal persona as reflected on social networking sites can give employers insight into the kind of person they really are. It has become almost expected that certain employers will look online to see what someone has recently Tweeted or posted on YouTube. Candidates’ candid behavior when they are not in the formal setting of an interview can be enlightening to a potential employer.

Legal Matters

Gathering some information is perfectly legal, but there’s a fine line between appropriate inquiries and invasion of privacy. Knowing what’s fair game and what’s out of bounds will ensure your background searches are legal. The consequences for failing to do so are serious. If you violate candidates’ privacy, they can take legal action against you.

Laws frequently change, so it’s important to stay current. In fact, there are a number of proposals working their way through the legal and legislative system that question the validity of many aspects of background screening. For example, credit checks are being challenged by many legislatures. Already four states, Hawaii, Illinois, Oregon, and Washington, restrict their use. Fifteen other states are in the process of limiting the scope of such checks by employers. And there’s currently a federal bill wending its way through the House (H.R. 321) that would prohibit employers from doing credit inquiries with exceptions only for financial institutions and national security clearance.

The Small Business Administration offers information on background checks, including legal particulars such as when consent from potential employees is required and which checks aren’t legally permitted at all.

The most important considerations have to do with privacy and consent. Certain checks, such as those regarding medical issues or financial standing, may only be required if they pertain to an employee’s ability to perform or hold a certain clearance status. Most of the time, an employer avoids legal problems by informing a candidate of both the intention to perform a background search as well as any adverse action that may occur due to a poor result. The consumer reporting agencies only disclose information when an employer has verified compliance with the Fair Credit Reporting Act. Compliance with these standards virtually ensures that an employer is covered.

Outsourcing

Because the laws are ever changing and quite complicated, many employers turn their screening needs over to companies that specialize in background checks. That can be a good idea for legal reasons as well as for the sake of expediency. Companies that specialize in background checks know what to search for and where to find the information, and they are well-versed in the restrictions and privacy laws that may apply. Outsourcing is more expensive than culling information in-house, but it is likely to be more accurate and more thorough. And unlike a computer, human beings can follow up on hunches of discrepancies among sources.

If you choose the outsourcing route, insist on multiple references from background screening companies. There are widespread reports of employers receiving outdated and incorrect information after paying significant fees to these types of firms. Don’t outsource this function unless you are confident that the firm has a good reputation and is knowledgeable about the law (nationally and in your state).