Check Types
Plain-English definitions of every search on a report.
Criminal background check: what it is and what it returns
A criminal background check searches court and government records for charges and convictions tied to a verified identity. A defensible check combines a national database sweep for pointers with county-level court searches, which are the authoritative source.
County vs national criminal search: what's the difference?
A national criminal search scans an aggregated database of records from many sources and is fast but incomplete. A county criminal search pulls directly from the court where a case was filed and is the authoritative source — slower, more accurate, and required to confirm any database hit.
Employment verification: how it works
Employment verification confirms where a candidate worked, their job title, and their dates of employment. It is done either by contacting past employers directly or by pulling records from payroll and financial data sources, which returns results in minutes instead of days.
Education verification: what employers confirm
Education verification confirms with the institution or its designated clearinghouse that a candidate attended, the dates attended, and whether the degree claimed was actually awarded. It typically takes two to five business days and has no lookback limit.
MVR check: what a driving record shows
A motor vehicle record check pulls a candidate's driving history from the state DMV, showing license status and class, endorsements, moving violations, accidents, suspensions, and DUI convictions. Most return within minutes to one business day.
DOT background check requirements
A DOT background check follows FMCSA rules for commercial drivers and requires a three-year safety performance history from previous employers, an MVR review, a DOT drug and alcohol test, a Clearinghouse query, and a valid medical examiner's certificate.
Pre-employment drug screening explained
Pre-employment drug screening usually means a urine test on a 5-panel or 10-panel screen at a collection site. Negative results return in one to two business days; non-negatives go to confirmation testing and medical review, adding two to three days.
Identity and biometric verification in screening
Identity verification confirms the applicant is who they claim to be by validating a government ID and matching a live selfie to it. Doing this before any search runs eliminates the wrong-person matches that cause false-positive background reports.
Employment credit checks: what employers can see
An employment credit report shows account history, balances, payment history, collections, and public records such as bankruptcies — but never a credit score. Around eleven states restrict employment credit checks to specific financial or executive roles.
Professional license verification
License verification checks the issuing board or registry to confirm a credential is real, currently active, and free of disciplinary action. Most boards publish online lookups that return in minutes; boards without one take one to two business days.
Healthcare sanctions and exclusion screening
Exclusion screening checks whether a person or entity is barred from participating in federal healthcare programs, primarily through the OIG LEIE and SAM.gov lists. Employing an excluded individual can trigger civil monetary penalties, so the lists must be checked at hire and monthly thereafter.
Continuous criminal monitoring: how it works
Continuous monitoring re-screens current employees automatically and alerts the employer when a new record appears — a new arrest or conviction, a license lapse, an MVR violation, or an exclusion listing — instead of waiting for an annual re-check.