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AMERICAN INFORMATION BUREAU
DESCRIPTION OF SERVICES
SOCIAL SECURITY NUMBER VERIFICATION
Can you tell if a social security number is valid? We can. We verify whether the number is in a valid range, and provide you with the state and year of issue.
SOCIAL SECURITY NUMBER SEARCH
We can search a national database, and report the names, addresses, and employers associated with a given social security number. In addition, we will alert you if the number has been reported to have been misused, never issued, issued within the last 5 years, or belonging to a reportedly deceased individual. There are many reasons why different identities may appear for a social security number. Former names, transposed numbers, attempted or actual fraud, or persons using their spouse’s number among other reasons.
DRIVERS LICENSE VERIFICATION
Does your applicant have a valid drivers license? Is it currently expired or has it been revoked or suspended? We can check by name or by license number to verify that applicant has a valid license. Also, records will often provide verification of date of birth, current address, height, weight, hair and eye color, and date/type of last transaction, i.e.: renewal, duplicate license issued, original issue date, etc.
DRIVING HISTORY
A typical driving record review will verify an applicants full name, drivers license number, and date of birth. It will also list all moving violations, as well as suspensions and revocations. A speeding ticket from years ago might not be a concern, but a pattern of alcohol abuse (DWI), drug abuse (DUI), or repeated recklessness behind the wheel should. This type of behavior might carry over into work-related areas. A 3 year history is commonly available, and a lifetime history is available under certain circumstances.
PROFESSIONAL LICENSE VERIFICATION
The welfare of students, patients, clients and others that depend on the competency of licensed professional service providers is a major concern. In the professional arena, Licenses and Certifications held should be verified to assure they are valid and current. Teachers, Doctors, Nurses, CPA’s, Engineers and Attorneys are just a few of these licensed professionals. When you consider the nature of the employment and the risk of liability, this check is a must.
WORKERS COMPENSATION REPORT
Fraudulent claims for workers compensation benefits cost American businesses millions of dollars each year. You need all the information available to make an informed decision. The Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) restricts an employer from using previous workers compensation claims to deny employment, and a request to obtain information about workers compensation claims can be made only after a conditional offer of employment has been made. Often, special forms and time limits restrict this report, and the state regulations vary. In addition, the same inquiry may be required for all applicants in the same job category.
PERSONAL/PRE-EMPLOYMENT CREDIT REPORT
The information available through this report reveals important information to you as an employer. Does the prospective employee handle their finances respectfully, or do they have past due accounts or accounts that were charged off. Is there a history of bankruptcy, tax liens, judgments, government claims or similar negative information? The report also lists aliases and other names used by the applicant, shows previous addresses, former and current employers, and reports suspected fraudulent activity as to their social security number.
EDUCATION VERIFICATION
Resume “padding” has become almost epidemic in a number of professions and industries. Education reveals much about a persons abilities and initiative. We can verify degrees earned, certifications, course and/or class attendance, and release that information to you.
VERIFY PREVIOUS EMPLOYMENT
It’s often difficult to get information from a previous employer. However, our trained representatives often have excellent results in securing such information. Our approach is to ask for the persons help in filling in a work history profile on the specific employee. Generally, objective questions such as dates of employment, positions held, pay rates, eligibility for rehire, etc., are easily answered. However, subjective questions such as opinions of work performance, real reasons for leaving, general opinions of the individual, and any special problems or circumstances are sometimes difficult to secure. Nevertheless, we have found that by explaining to the individual that; 1. AIB is not an employer, 2. We are simply filling in a profile of the employee, 3. The information they give will be used with other information to make a hiring decision, and 4. The information they report will remain confidential, they will usually talk to us.
PERSONAL REFERENCE CONTACT
Just as we do in the verification of previous employment, we attempt to enlist the help of the personal reference contact to fill in a profile of the individual. We ask among other things, their relationship to the individual, how long they have known them, if they’ve ever worked together, and their general opinion of the individual.
FEDERAL DISTRICT CRIMINAL HISTORY REPORT
We also recommend a Federal District Court Search to complete the criminal profile. District Court jurisdiction typically cover a large area, and in some cases cover entire states. Federal District Courts typically handle significant felony cases involving multiple offenders over multiple states, such as drug cartels and auto theft rings.
SEX OFFENDER DATABASE REPORT
Individual states carry sex offender information in state databases. Also, there is a multi-state sex offender database, covering the 44 states that have statewide sex offender registries.
NATIONAL CRIMINAL HISTORY REPORT
As of October 2004, a "National" criminal database is available. The database covers Texas + 46 additional states and the District of Columbia sex and violent offenders, Texas + 38 additional states & The District of Columbia criminal databases, Foreign Nationals/US Sanctions list, and a proprietary database of recognized offenders. It is the most comprehensive criminal database yet available to the public.
FOREIGN NATIONALS US SANCTIONS DATABASE
This is a list of all foreign nationals (individuals and entities), that the US Government has sanctions against. No US person or company may have any dealings with anyone on this list.
DRUG SCREENING REPORT
We recommend a drug profile on every employee you hire. Drugs are expensive. You don’t need a drug addict using your companies resources to pay for their habit. We offer a 5-panel and a 10-panel drug screen, as well as a 5 minute "Quick Screen". These tests show current drug abuse, and is targeted towards the habitual offender.
RUSH REPORTS
We will acquire and report all data possible with 8 business hours. Additional information requested but not received will be sent as an updated report as quickly as possible.
SEARCH PACKAGES
If your background needs are the same for all employees, let us design you a personalized background screen. It is easier for us to do it the same way each time, and it is more cost effective for you. We’ll be glad to design and quote you a package price.
SPECIAL SEARCHES
We do all types of searches for information. We search locally and nation wide. Just ask.
CRIMINAL HISTORY REPORTS
Where do you do a criminal search? A social security search can identify previous places of residence and those counties and sometimes other states
must be checked. A criminal background check should always be done in the county of current residence, and state wide when available. We also
recommend a Federal District Court search to get a complete criminal history. In some states all counties can be checked at once, and in other states,
counties must be checked individually. Some counties keep their felony and misdemeanor records in separate databases. In those cases we always
check the felony database, and will check the misdemeanor database upon request. Sex Offender databases are checked when available. In most
areas access is not difficult and turnaround time is generally 24 hours, but in some states and/or counties, turnaround time might be extended. If the
delay will be longer than 72 hours, the employer will be notified. So to summarize, there are basically 4 types of criminal searches:
County Criminal Search
State Wide Criminal Search & Sex Offender Database (where available)
"National" Criminal Search
Federal District Court Search
Criminal searches are usually the most important, but also can be the most confusing of the searches we conduct. Each companies needs are different.
Let us help you define exactly which type of criminal search you need to satisfy the needs of your company.
** NOTE: STATE OF TEXAS CRIMINAL SEARCHES
Since American Information Bureau is based in Texas, a good portion of our business is done in Texas. Since there is often confusion among
employers about how exactly to access criminal data in Texas, we felt a brief summary might help. When a company makes a decision to do background
checks, the first and most important factor usually considered is an applicants criminal history. The State of Texas does have a statewide criminal database, and there is some state criminal information available in the private sector, but it is often incomplete or missing important criminal information. Why? Currently, there is no state law that requires the individual counties to report criminal data to the State of Texas. Some counties report all arrests, some report only the felonies and some report nothing at all.
So how do you get the best overall criminal history report? We recommend running a criminal check through the State of Texas D.P.S. Criminal Database and Sex Offender Database. Also run a criminal check in the applicants significant county(s) of residence for the past 10 years. If the applicant lives in a county near a major metropolitan area, we recommend a check in both counties. For example, the applicant lives in Fort Bend County which is near Houston or Harris county. We recommend the D.P.S. state wide check, and a criminal check in Fort Bend County, and
also in Harris County. In another example, the applicant lived in Dallas for 4 years before moving to Houston 3 weeks ago. We would recommend the D.P.S. state wide check and a criminal check in Dallas County. We could run a check in Harris County, but it would be unlikely that a Harris County check would reveal any additional information since the applicant had only recently moved there.
We also recommend a "National" Criminal Search & a Federal District Court Search to complete the criminal profile. District Court jurisdiction typically cover a large area, and in some cases cover entire states. Federal District Courts typically handle significant felony cases involving multiple offenders over multiple states.
We hope this information helps eliminate some of the confusion about criminal searches.
02-05
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