What Do Background Checks Reveal?

check employee backgroundBecause background checks can reveal all sorts of information about people, there are many valid reasons to conduct them. Employers, landlords, and financial institutions conduct background checks every day to help them decide who to hire, who to rent to, or whether or not they want to loan money to someone. Background checks are done frequently for personal reasons as well. Many people run background checks on individuals that they’re interested in dating or on people that will be spending a great deal of time around their children. Whatever the reason is for conducting one, a thorough background check can be a very helpful tool when it comes to evaluating someone’s history and overall character. Listed for you here are some of the different types of information one might find when conducting a comprehensive background check.

Known Aliases

Known aliases listed for a person usually include maiden names, or birth names that have been legally changed, as well as any other names they’ve used that have been documented along the way. Known aliases are usually the first bits of information you’ll come across when conducting a background check on someone.

Contact Information

Even the most basic background check will reveal a person’s contact information, such as a residential address, phone number, and an email address. You’ll also be able to view a list of addresses, phone numbers, or email addresses that may have been used in the past.

Marital Status

You may be able to find out someone’s marital status when conducting a background check since a marriage license must be obtained in order to get married. Likewise, a divorce might be revealed since that action would have been granted by a judge, and that type of information is considered public record.

Educational Background

An individual’s educational background is usually pretty easy to confirm. You can find out if when and where someone went to high school, whether or not they graduated, and if they went on to pursue further education at a university, community college, or technical program.

Employment History

A person’s employment history is almost always revealed in a background check. As long as a person has consistently filed income taxes, there will be a paper trail leading to all places someone has been legally employed, both past and present.

Credit History

A background check on someone’s credit will reveal how responsible they are financially. Their credit report will show how much debt they have (including credit cards and loans), who their creditors are, if they pay their bills on time, and whether or not they have ever defaulted on a loan. It will also let you know if the person in question has ever been evicted from a home or apartment or filed for bankruptcy.

Criminal History

A large number of background checks are done to find out whether or not individuals have a criminal history they’re hiding. If someone is a registered sex offender or if they’ve committed any felonies or misdemeanors, that information will be quickly revealed in a criminal background check.

Minor Traffic Offenses

Minor traffic violations and accidents can be found when doing a background check, and although these small infractions are not necessarily considered criminal behavior, someone such as an employer may want to know about them. This is especially true if an individual is being considered for a position that involves the operation of a vehicle.

As you can see, a background check can reveal a lot of useful information about a person. So if you want to know whether or not you can trust someone, whether it’s for personal reasons or business ones, a background check is a great way to find out.