Most employers feel that an FBI check is the best way to get authentic information about a prospective employee and his past activities to let them make an informed decision on the desirability of inducting him into the workforce. It is true that FBI records are comprehensive and correct and provide an in-depth view about who a specific individual is, and what are the details of his/her criminal past, if there is one.
A lot of people are under the misconception that there is a file or rap sheet on every US citizen available with the FBI. This is not true. The FBI has records only of those people who have been involved in foreign counter intelligence, counter terrorism, drugs or organized crimes, violent crime, white collar crime or issues connected to civil rights. Any one who has a file with the FBI is sure to have been arrested/detained and fingerprinted. He may have been put to trial under due legal process of the United States of America.
This just explains that it would be wrong to assume that there exists a file on everyone with the FBI, and that running an FBI background check on a person will surely pull up some information. Therefore it is better to use some service other than an FBI background check like the state public records database if you just need looking into driving records, or credit reports or make other types of background checks. The information that will be available on running an FBI background check will consist of details stored on fingerprint cards related to arrests, federal employment, military service, and naturalization.
However, FBI background checks have their own importance and are a great resource to find out where a person has been and where he/she stands as a law-abiding citizen. It can be used for verifying claims of being in military employment. When you run a FBI background check you would feel more comfortable with respect to a new employee or a tenant to be, as you will have reliable evidence in writing about whom the person is. Running an FBI check is no more expensive than running any other type of background check, be it a state or a national background check. However, the one point to be kept in mind is that there may not be a file/information about each and every US citizen with the FBI.
Amidst ever increasing security threats, especially after 9/11, fear of personal safety and safety of the family and loved ones has risen to very high levels. This has made companies everywhere in the US obtain fingerprints of job aspirants and pass them to the FBI for a background check of the person before they give any consideration to his/her hiring. And this applies to all categories of employees whether airline pilots, hotel managers, chefs and limousine drivers just to name a few. People want to be sure they are not hiring a fake or renting out their properties to a criminal. Therefore, if you are an employer or a landlord, an FBI check is an important tool for your own protection as also for others.
You can make an FBI background check on yourself if you want to know what information the FBI has on you, by sending a request in writing to the Criminal Justice Information Services Division of the Federal Bureau of Investigation. You need to attach a copy of your driver’s license or other identity proof, which bears your name, address, date of birth and photo with your request. You also need to annex a set of your roll-inked fingerprint impressions along with a money order/check for $18. This will let you know if there is an FBI file on you and whether there is some wrong information on your file or not.
