Weather look you’re looking for your own, a loved one, or someone you met online, there are a variety of reasons why people complete background checks online. Background checks can help ensure that those in your life are safe and honest people. Depending on what you have on your background check it can affect things like a future job or even a loan from the bank.
It is important to note that if you are an employer or landlord, you may have to use specific types of services to complete a background check. Below you’re going to learn everything there is to know on how to complete a background check online.
Hiring Professionals
To get the most thorough background check possible, you may want to hire a professional company to do it for you. There are a variety of different background check agencies that are available online. You will find that taking this route may cost you a bit more money, but you don’t really have to do any work.
On the topic of hiring a professional background check agency, you will want to be hyper-aware of scams. Several dishonest websites will charge you a fee and won’t actually complete a background check.
Doing It Yourself
Completing a background check yourself is a much more cost-efficient route to take. Let’s talk about a couple of different ways you can do this.
Background Check For a Well-Known Person
If you’re looking up a background check for a well-known person, such as a celebrity or politician, you want to make sure you put quotes around their name. To do this you can simply go to your preferred search engine and type in their name.
For example, you would type, “John Doe”, instead of just John Doe without quotations. You can add additional information to ensure that you are getting a background check for the correct individual. This could look something like, “John Doe” Apple Inc.
Background Check For Someone You Know or Yourself
One of the main ways you can access background information is by searching for public records. Public records will show a variety of different information including arrests, tickets, and court appearances. You may also be able to use government websites or a brick and mortar police department to get background check information.
It’s important to note that not every county has background check information online. If you’re not finding any information that you’re looking for, reach out to your county courthouse for more information. Thanks to technology and the rise of social media, you can often find a lot of personal information on social media platforms such as Facebook.
If you’re looking for information such as credit reports or military records, you may not find anything. This information is often not accessible to the public without permission. If you’re able to do so safely, talk with the individual in person. This can be a good thing to do if you were getting a new roommate or leading someone from the internet in person. The easiest way to do this is to simply ask for a copy of their credit report. This could help you to make a decision about whether they are the right person you’re looking for.
Lastly, don’t get discouraged too easily. When you’re relying on things such as public records for a background check, it may take quite a bit of time. You may have to search through several different county records to find what you’re looking for. If the person you’re looking up has a lot of criminal activity on their background check, it can be incredibly difficult to find everything.