Attending a job interview can be a nerve-wracking experience. There is a lot to think about, such as updating your resume, practicing sample questions and answers, and deciding what to wear.
At the end of the interview, the HR representative could tell you that they will be in touch, following a routine third-party background check. What exactly does this mean for you?
Third-Party Background Checks

A background check is when someone’s records undergo a review, typically before they get an offer for a job or a rental lease. This includes records relating to the person’s financial, criminal, employment, and academic history. It could also contain information about their known aliases, past addresses, or relatives.
Sometimes employers or landlords will conduct the background check on their own. This is a more time-consuming process, and it can lead to missing valuable information.
Instead of doing this, they may decide to hire a third-party company to perform the check for them. Check People, for example, is a company that provides this service to save employers time in the hiring process.
What Might You Need a Background Check For?
Performing background checks happen for a variety of different reasons. This includes, but is not limited to the following:
Why Are They Asking to do a Background Check?
The important thing to remember is that most background checks are just a routine part of the process.
There is no reason to believe that you are under suspicion for anything. For instance, employers are looking to ensure that you have the qualifications that you claim to have. They are also trying to see if you would be a good fit in the company so that they can reduce employee turnover.
Part of the background check process includes following up with past employers and references. They will ask questions relating to your character, work ethic, and people skills. This will give your new employer more information that they can use to make a decision.
Why Use a Third-Party Background Check Service?
The benefits of using a third-party background check service are numerous. As mentioned above, using such a service will save the interested party time since they do not need to do the work themselves.
They can focus on other aspects of their job. This is particularly helpful if it is an employer who has many hires to make or a landlord with multiple units to rent out. It will also provide the employer with results faster, so they can reach out and let the candidate know sooner. This will result in losing fewer good candidates for other jobs.
Another benefit is that a third-party company has all the skills and resources required to conduct these checks.
The company has gone through the process many times before and knows exactly what to look for. They will also have greater success at accessing records that are harder to get a hold of, such as bankruptcy filings.
A third reason to use a service such as Check People is that it results in fewer errors. There is less of a chance of conducting a check on the wrong person with the same name as the candidate.
The company will also be aware that they need to get the candidate’s permission before starting the search and give them a copy of the results afterward. Errors cost time and money in the form of potential lawsuits, and so reducing them should always be a priority.
Where do Third-Party Companies Get the Information?
It can be interesting to consider how third-party background companies work and where they get their information from. They can find basic information by searching your social media accounts.
Here, companies can gather data on their hobbies, addresses, and professionalism. The company will compile all these things into a report for the employer to look through.
The companies can also request certain records from county courthouses. They can ask for information relating to any infractions you may have committed. They will do this for all the cities you have ever lived in.
Finally, they will conduct a thorough employment verification by contacting all or most of the candidate’s past companies.
This is a very involved process, as it includes speaking with past employers, confirming the type of work the candidate did there, and double-checking the dates of employment.
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