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PRESS RELEASE
The Integrity News
Vol. XIII No. 10
ISSN 1081-2717

 

The Integrity Center, Inc.
"objective risk management services"


May 17, 2004 


Mainstream Media
FINALLY Address
The Risks Of Using
Online Databases For
Employment Screening

In a May 10, 2004 article in the Chicago  Tribune entitled "Online screeners may miss criminals", investigative reporter Greg Burns reminds America that "cheap  Web services are often superficial and  trample worker's privacy."   He goes on to  point out that "The longstanding Fair  Credit Reporting Act ( FCRA ), for instance,  requires employers to use up-to-date   information for screening job candidates."   His article is just the beginning of what is about to become a media unveiling of  a national privacy and misrepresentation scandal that is hurting job seekers and employers nationwide.

**********
Editors Note:

The reporter might also have quoted governing Federal  law  ---  FCRA Section 613(a)(2):    A report "shall be  considered up-to-date if the current public record status  of the item, at the time of the report, is reported."   That  is, if an employer is supplied by a vendor with a report  dated today, to be legal, it must contain what the source  ( court, DMV, etc. ) has on file today.   This is further  discussed in an opinion letter from the Federal Trade  Commission (  the agency that enforces the FCRA  ) in  a letter dated May 5, 1999, in which the Federal attorney  says in summation of the discussion of this issue:     "Under this standard, an employment screening  service that uses 'stored data' (  which may be as  much as 90 days old  ) does not comply with (  FCRA  )  Subsection (2)."    Data that is retrieved fresh from the sources daily is the only legal up-to-date alternative.

The reporter should also have pointed out that the  amended FCRA now governs ALL reports on  consumers, not just credit reports.

**********

In addition to it being illegal to make an adverse  employment decision based on data purchased from  the stored data in a commercial database, the Chicago  Tribune article further clarifies the situation with the  following quotes:

"Employers worried about crime, terrorism and  liability are embracing a new breed of online  services for screening job candidates, but these  low-budget background checks don't always check  out."   These online services sell stored data that they have accumulated over time in gigantic  databases.

"The cheapest ones routinely fail to identify  criminals, performing such superficial reviews that  serious offenders can get perfectly clean reports."

"Even when these services uncover criminal records,  the information often is incomplete and unreliable."

The reporter then goes on to quote new research  from Criminology Professor Shawn Bushway at the University of Maryland.   The criminal records of  120 parolees in Virginia were checked using a popular  online database background checking company.     Sixty of the parolee names came back with NO   criminal record.

The reporter relates that the Chicago Tribune itself conducted a study in March, where 10 offenders were checked, and the online stored data database service  they used found NO criminal records for any of them.

The article says the "the rise of the Internet and  inexpensive computer databases has transformed the  business."   The article comments that about 25% of  background checking firms are reputable.   The few  reputable firms, like The Integrity Center, Inc., use  ONLY freshly retrieved data and every report they  provide is up-to-date.

The article also tells the reader that "the subjects must give their (  written  ) permission for a background review and receive copies of any records used in employment decisions."   In fact, there is a little more  than that to the Federal law in the way of procedure.

What Should Concern Employers ?

1. There are actually WARNING SIGNS to be aware of to tell you if a vendor is providing your reports from aged data stored in a commercial database.

2. It is illegal to knowingly use a background checking  vendor whose reports do not comply with Federal law.   It is also illegal to represent that reports comply with Federal law when the vendor knows that they do not.

3. If it was legal for employers to use stored data from  commercial databases, it would leave them exposed  because of convictions that may have been recorded  concerning the subject since the database vendor last  updated their records from the particular source.    See  the explanation of these GAPS.

The article in the Chicago Tribune should be hailed as a great media effort.   It sheds a bright light on a serious  fraud that is being committed every week by stored data  commercial database vendors against job seekers and  employers.   The rest of the media now need to pick up on  Mr. Burns' leadership, point out the real costs and  problems for employers, point out the harm done to job  seekers, and find out why this fraud is allowed to continue.

The article in the Chicago Tribune in fact should have  been titled:    'Screeners using commercial databases may  miss criminals'.   In 2004, the most reputable background  check companies lead the industry with cutting edge  technology that accepts work orders and delivers reports  securely 'online' using encrypted communication.

For additional information about the business risks related to the purchase of stored data from commercial databases,  which data is then used for adverse employment decisions,  visit the website of The Integrity Center, Inc. and feel free  to call (972) 484-6140  to ask any questions or discuss  any concerns.   Helping you with your Risk Management  and HR Automation is what we do.


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