613 notice: A notification to a candidate that information on their background check might negatively affect their job chances.
Under the Fair Credit Reporting Act (FCRA), consumer reporting agencies must take an action below:
- Give the candidate a 613 notice at the time of the report.
- Keep a strong process to ensure that public record data is current and correct.
address scope: The number of years of candidate address history that Checkr uses for criminal searches at the county or state level. For example, a 7-year address scope starts searches in counties from the candidate's past 7 years of address history.
adjudication: The process by which organizations reviewing returned background check reports decide whether to proceed with the candidate's hiring/engagement process based on the information in the background check report. From Checkr's perspective, the adjudication process ends with either candidate engagement or candidate adverse action.
alias: A variation of the candidate's current legal name or a different name associated with the candidate. Checkr uses aliases during the searches below:
- County civil search
- County search
- Federal search
- Global watchlist search
- National search
- Pointer search
- Sex offender registry search
- State search
alternative adjudication: A legal process in which the court postpones entering a final judgment while the defendant fulfills court-ordered requirements, such as probation or drug rehabilitation. This deferred judgment allows the defendant to demonstrate good behavior and potentially avoid a conviction on their record if they successfully complete the mandated action.
adverse action: The two-step process of notifying a candidate that they won't be selected for the role based on the background check results. The Checkr built-in adverse action process enables customers’ compliance with the Fair Credit Reporting Act (FCRA) requirements for adverse action in the employment context. The adverse action notice includes a copy of the report and allows a candidate time to dispute incorrect information in the report or provide evidence of rehabilitation. The adverse action notice also informs candidates of their rights under the FCRA and state and local laws.
Refer to pre-adverse action notice and post-adverse action notice.
automated:Describes a software-enabled process with no human intervention. The Checkr platform initiates, advances, and completes automated processes, usually without direct human involvement.
candidate:The subject, usually a job seeker or potential volunteer, of a background check.
Candidate Experience team: The Checkr Candidate Experience team directly supports candidates by phone, email, and Candidate Portal communication. The team answers questions and resolves issues with candidate background checks. Members of the Candidate Experience team are Candidate Experience Representatives (CXRs).
certification: The process that organizations use to certify to Checkr the information below:
- The organization has a permissible purpose.
- The candidate provided proper consent for ordering the background check.
- The organization's use of background reports complies with all applicable laws.
Certification happens when the organization orders the background check, whether through the API or Checkr Dashboard. The master service agreement (MSA) also contains certifications.
Checkr Investigations team: The Checkr Investigations team investigates each candidate's dispute of information in the background check report.
Checkr Quality Assurance (QA) team: The Checkr QA team manually reviews certain background check reports before completion. To ensure reporting accuracy and completeness, these reviews might require additional research of record information or personally identifiable information (PII).
context date: The case event date necessary to calculate ages and times for records. Because municipalities document different information about cases, the same record type might show ages and times based on different context dates below:
- Arrest
- Charge
- Disposition
- Offense
- Release
- Suspension start
- Suspension end
court researcher: A person who goes to courthouses to conduct public records searches. Runners and court researchers work for Checkr partners to retrieve offline records.
deferred adjudication: A legal process in which the defendant pleads guilty or no contest to a charge, but the judge defers a formal finding of guilt. If the defendant completes a probationary period with no violations, the judge might dismiss the charge.
disposition: The current status or final outcome of a criminal case such as conviction or dismissed.
dispute: Action by a candidate informing Checkr that their report contains potentially inaccurate, incomplete, or unreportable information.
engage: Checkr term indicating that an organization is advancing a candidate in the hiring process after the background check report. Checkr Dashboard analytics track engaged candidates.
exception: Internal-only Checkr term indicating that Checkr needs more information from the candidate, such as a copy of a driver license or their mother’s maiden name, potentially delaying report completion. Checkr contacts candidates directly to provide information that usually enables the background check to continue.
filter: Limit information from a data stream or reporting. Checkr applies filters that hide returned information for several reasons:
- Compliance laws restrict the reporting of some information.
- Organizations decide to limit the information that their reports return.
- The record identity doesn't match the candidate.
non-conviction: The legal status of a defendant who was charged but not found guilty of a crime. The situations below lead to non-convictions:
- The court dismissed the charge against the defendant.
- The court acquitted the defendant.
- The defendant completed a diversion program.
offline records: These physical records are available only in person at the courthouse, not electronically over the internet. Offline records must be retrieved in person, at specific locations, and during posted hours, typically by court researchers. There are two methods of offline record retrieval:
- Public access terminal (PAT): Members of the public can access records using a computer terminal at the court without a clerk.
- clerk-assisted search: Court clerks must retrieve the records.
online records: These digital records are available through publicly accessible online resources. These records are generally electronic and remotely available but might have access limitations. Online records might require a fee to access or have limited access hours. Online records might have limited case information.
partner: An organization that Checkr works and is in a master service agreement (MSA) with to provide software and services to customers.
personally identifiable information (PII): Information, such as name, Social Security number (SSN), birth date, mother's maiden name, or biometric records, that can be used to identify a specific individual.
The unauthorized disclosure of sensitive PII, such as an SSN, could harm the individual and/or be a compliance risk. Public records, phone books, corporate directories, and public websites contain nonsensitive PII.
pre-adverse action notice: The organization notifies the candidate in writing of the preliminary decision not to select them for the role or keep them in the role based on information in the background check report. The candidate receives a copy of their background check and other applicable notices and disclosures. Before the final decision, the candidate can respond to potential inaccuracies in their background check by starting a dispute or providing evidence of mitigation. The pre-adverse action notice must be provided in permissible-purpose background checks, including independent contractor and volunteer relationships.
post-adverse action notice: The organization notifies the candidate in writing of their final decision not to advance the candidate in the hiring process for employment permissible purposes background checks. This notification completes the adverse action process and happens usually 7 calendar days after the candidate receives the pre-adverse action notice.
salting: The process by which Checkr initiates searches with its vendors on previously discovered and verified records. When these searches complete, Checkr compares the results with those that were previously discovered. This process allows Checkr to test vendors' accuracy and comprehensiveness.
search: A specific background check search, such as criminal records checks, motor vehicle record reports, and sex offender registries. Background checks include multiple searches.
search scope: The number of years of record history that Checkr uses for records searches. The industry standard search scope is 7 years and searches records with filing dates within the last 7 years. Search scope might also be called lookback period.
vendor: A company Checkr buys services and researched information from for purposes of background check reports.
These terms imply no legal commitments and are for informational purposes only.