An error on a background check may prevent a prospective employee from getting hired for work, but could an error on a background check get an already hired employee fired from a job?

The answer is “Yes” according to an article in the Baltimore Sun that tells the story of a woman in Maryland who was fired from her job after an error on a government background check mistakenly deemed her “unsuitable” for work on a government contract even though she had no criminal record.

According to the Sun, Eschol Amelia “Amy”  Studnitz, 59, lost her $58,000 a year accounting job at Corporate Mailing Services (CMS) in July because a background check investigation for the Social Security Administration (SSA) – the government agency CMS had won a contract to handle mail for  – was returned as unsuitable for the low-level (Level 1) security clearance needed for all employees at the CMS facility in Arbutus, Maryland.

However, the Sun reports that the SSA wrote a follow-up letter to CMS in August reversing its decision on the background check so that Studnitz could work on the new contract, but Studnitz was not reinstated by her former employer due to reorganizing and supposed performance shortfalls or hired elsewhere in this tough job market. Studnitz has also asked Representative Roscoe Bartlett (R - MD) to look into her case, and Bartlett is also considering legislation to address future similar situations where inaccurate government criminal background checks are the cause of action for loss of jobs for government work, according to the Sun.

With background checks becoming increasingly common, the Sun report on Studnitz’s firing shows the impact that glitches in databases used during the background check process can have on employees, employers, and even the government. While firings based on mistakes in background checks are relatively rare, errors and inaccuracies on background checks do occur and should be avoided at all costs – especially when the cost includes employment. Some jobseekers are literally taking background check investigations into their own hands by ordering “personal” background checks on themselves to make sure their personal information is accurate, current, and secure.

While most background check companies focus only on employers, MyBackgroundCheck.com – a pioneer in consumer requested background checks – offers both jobseekers and current employees the opportunity to perform personal background checks on themselves to protect their personal information. For more information on personal background checks, visit www.mybackgroundcheck.com, email info@mybackgroundcheck.com, or call 1-800-503-2364. To follow MyBackgroundCheck.com on Twitter, visit www.twitter.com/MyBackgroundChk.

tahearn@mybackgroundcheck.com

The Better Business Bureau (BBB) is warning jobseekers to be cautious during their search for employment and to watch out for background check scams, phishing attacks, and identity theft. 

According to the BBB, with the national unemployment rate close to 10 percent, and 13 states experiencing unemployment rates in the double-digits, the threat of identity theft, phishing, and background check scams targeting job seekers is rising with unemployment rates because scammers are out to take advantage of the unemployed.

In a press release, the BBB warns jobseekers to beware of three scams in particular that could lead to lost money, missed opportunities, and identity theft.

1. Job Offers Requiring Upfront Fees: Recently, job ads from a company in Florida claiming it needed 2,500 employees for their new headquarters asked applicants had to submit $24 to pay for a background check, money that was later discovered only went to the company’s owner. Similar schemes are appearing across the country.
2. Job Placement Companies Making Promises They Can’t Deliver: Job placement companies, or headhunter firms, usually do NOT charge the job seekers but are paid by companies that need help filling positions. However, one Maryland company charged $195 and guaranteed it could find jobseekers work, but the jobseekers didn’t receive call backs, jobs, or refunds.
3. Phishing Attacks By Fake Businesses To Commit Identity Theft: "Phishing" involves spam e-mails with job offers directing jobseekers to websites designed to solicit financial information for identity theft. The jobseekers may also find out they have been hired and immediately be asked for bank account or Social Security numbers.

In order to avoid identity theft or background check scams, the BBB advises jobseekers to be cautious when responding to unsolicited e-mails from supposed employers, fully research job placement companies, and not pay money to employers up front for services such as background checks without vetting the companies first.

To avoid background check scams and protect against identity theft, jobseekers may also want to perform "personal" background checks on themselves to make sure their personal information is current, accurate, and secure. While many background check firms only service employers, companies like MyBackgroundCheck.com – a pioneer in consumer requested background checks – offers "personal" background checks for individuals to use as jobseekers and consumers to use to protect against identity theft. Over one million individuals have purchased background checks through MyBackgroundCheck.com in the past year.

For more information about how jobseekers can use personal background checks to help prevent identity theft, visit www.mybackgroundcheck.com, email info@mybackgroundcheck.com, call 1-800-503-2364, and follow on Twitter at www.twitter.com/MyBackgroundChk.

tahearn@mybackgroundcheck.com

False background checks from possible identity theft or misidentification as described by CNN (video here) is a national problem that occurs nearly one out of five times a report is contested, according to research by MyBackgroundCheck.com, a national consumer background check company that has screened over a million consumers for criminal activity.

In a report first aired September 29 (video here), CNN reporter Gerri Willis interviewed a woman who described how her husband's dream job turned into a nightmare because of false information found on his pre-employment background check.

"Unfortunately, the case described in the CNN report is not unusual, and a recent study shows nearly one in five disputed background checks contain false information attributed to identity theft or misidentification" stated Robert Mather, CEO of MyBackgroundCheck.com. "Over one million consumers have purchased background checks through us, many to help in the job seeking process."

The research by MyBackgroundCheck.com focused on consumers that purchased their own background check – or had a background check procured through a prospective employer – and contested the results of the report. The study of disputed background checks revealed that the reasons for the disputes were:

• Criminal Identity Theft or not their record -- 21%
• Some Criminal records dismissed, others reported correctly (partial dispute/correction) -- 16%
• Untruthful applicant; Criminal record was reported correctly -- 16%
• Charges were reduced/dismissed or expunged and should not be reported -- 14%
• Court error (wrong criminal record was retrieved from files) -- 12%
• Record not allowed to be reported by law for employment purposes -- 11%
• Other -- 9%

A multitude of State and Federal laws protect job applicants from error and mandate potential employers – as well as the agency that investigated the background check and sold the report – to correct the mistakes at no cost to applicants.

A list of these laws and the potential penalties to employers or background check agencies violating them can be obtained for free by emailing info@mybackgroundcheck.com and requesting the publication "Laws Protecting the Rights of Consumers during the Background Check Process."

MyBackgroundCheck.com offers consumer requested "personal" background checks for consumers to use to keep their public and private information current, secure, and accurate. For more information, visit www.mybackgroundcheck.com, email info@mybackgroundcheck.com, or call 1-800-503-2364. Follow MyBackgroundCheck.com on Twitter at www.twitter.com/MyBackgroundChk.

Related Article: Can’t Get a Job? The Five Most Common Mistakes in Background Checks May Be Stopping You

tahearn@mybackgroundcheck.com

A troubling story out of Charlotte, North Carolina shows the importance of background checks for home help – also known as “in-house” services workers – and how performing these background checks on painters, landscapers, builders, and anyone else working in and around one’s home  can help protect one’s family.

A report from WCNC News Channel 36 in Charlotte, NC revealed that Ruben Garcia-Rosario, 25, an illegal immigrant, was recently arrested and is accused of plotting to kidnap two area girls from a bus stop for ransom money. Garcia-Rosario had apparently done some painting at the girls’ home nearly a year ago, News Channel 36 reported.

According to News Channel 36, after the girls – aged 7 and 9 – saw a suspicious man in a dark car with tinted windows watching them at their bus stop, they told a parent who was later able to write down the car's license plate number and call police about the incident.

Officials say this incident underscores the importance of protecting yourself with background checks when you hire people and let them into or near your home, News Channel 36 reported, and that  people who hire home help should not be afraid to ask for proof of a background check and should look elsewhere if the company or person can't provide it.

Another solution is to have to home help workers perform background checks on themselves with a reputable company that provides “personal” background check services for painters, contractors, landscapers, babysitters, and other in-house workers. MyBackgroundCheck.com – a pioneer in consumer requested background checks – helps individuals screen home help workers through a unique and innovative “applicant supplied” background check system where the jobseeker foots the bill.

For more information on MyBackgroundCheck.com’s Home Help Background Check service, visit www.mybackgroundcheck.com, email info@mybackgroundcheck.com, or call 1-800-503-2364. Follow MyBackgroundCheck.com on Twitter at www.twitter.com/MyBackgroundChk.

tahearn@mybackgroundcheck.com

A recent breaking news video report from CNN’s Gerri Willis shows a woman describing how her husband’s dream job turned into a nightmare because of false information found on his pre-employment background check, a problem that “personal” background check provider MyBackgroundCheck.com may have prevented.

The woman – who asked that her identity be hidden in order to avoid further problems for her husband – told Willis that she was shocked to discover that her husband’s background check revealed two felony convictions – and the job offer was gone, even though the records belonged to another man with the same name and the same birthday as her husband.

According to CNN, the background check report came from ChoicePoint, one of the nation’s largest commercial data brokers that sell personal information obtained from public and private records to employers and law enforcement.

The case described in the CNN report is not unusual, as many background checks contain errors and inaccuracies. Robert Mather, CEO of MyBackgroundCheck.com, a leading provider of “personal” background checks that consumers can perform on themselves to keep their personal information current, claimed that a recent study showed that nearly one in five disputed background checks contained false information.

“Over one million people have purchased background checks through MyBackgroundCheck.com,” said Mather. “We empower individuals take control of their personal information and correct any mistakes before others, including potential employers, see them. We help people take a pro-active approach to the problem of mistakes on background checks, and help them avoid being the victim of identity theft and lost job opportunities.”

“With an account from MyBackgroundCheck.com, jobseekers can make sure no errors or inaccuracies exist in their background checks and find out if they have been victimized by identity theft,” Mather added. “According to recent research, identity theft and fraud increased 22 percent in 2008, affecting nearly ten million Americans.”

In the CNN report, privacy advocate Lillie Coney from the Electronic Privacy Information Center said that most people have no clue what is included in data bases that can include incorrect and outdated information. “Let’s say there was an arrest based on faulty information and it was resolved and there was no conviction,” she explained to Gillis. “They still have that original arrest record that may be in a data based somewhere that is passed along repeatedly to people outside of your knowledge.”

Senator Patrick Leahy (D-VT), who has introduced legislation to make databases more accessible and more secure, told CNN’s Gillis he believes most consumers don’t know how exposed they are. “I want to know what is in my records,” Leahy said. “I want to know how to stop misinformation on records. And today people cannot do that.”

And while the woman in the CNN story says her husband ended up getting the job after ChoicePoint corrected the mistake, she is still concerned: “This will happen again,” she told Willis, especially if her husband ever needs a background check again if he changes jobs. “That record is out there.”

For more information on how consumers – including jobseekers – can use personal background checks to protect their personal information from errors, inaccuracies, and identity theft, please visit http://www.mybackgroundcheck.com/DontBeAVictim.

Follow MyBackgroundCheck.com on Twitter at www.twitter.com/MyBackgroundChk.

Related Blog: Can’t Get a Job? The Five Most Common Mistakes in Background Checks May Be Stopping You

tahearn@mybackgroundcheck.com