WHen a company hires you, then they do a background check.. What can they see? What are red flags?

If you did not list a job you had four years ago, that you only were there for about 4 months, are they able to see that? I left it off bc i was fired.

Thanks in advance for your help.

A background check is mainly your credit score, online posts and arrest\criminal history. Usually the only way they know your work record is from your resume or application.

Background checks vary.

If it's for security clearances, you're smoked.

If it's just "check the credit, check in with listed companies" you might be okay.

It's too late to say "Just tell them you got fired from one job with an appropriate reason."

Good luck - lying for employment usually doesn;t pay off - you might be okay.

I completely agree with you. I probably should of just put it down, but with this type of job you cannot be job hopping, and a four month stay would of opened way too many question, bc the company that I got let go from is very reputable, and you dont just leave a job like that after 4 months, and i plane old got fired for being an idiot on team trip. Not a good way to go.

That being said, i can bs my way thru the interviews and all that, but it is the background check that has me shitting bricks over here. It is not a secret clearance or anything like that, but it is a management position. Guess we will see.

Cant they see who you worked for on your credit report?

How much of an idiot on that team trip? Give me details...

A Drunk Idiot. Urinating in public, threatening team members for trying to stop said urinating in public.

Really have no clue, was a black out night. I do not drink anymore, but yea, it was pretty bad.

I would be worried about what other things you may not remember while drinking too much.

Part of a background check can be a short interview with neighbors, friends and some old workmates. One of teh first things they will check is your Facebook, that is one of the easiest places to get the downlow on anyone that is below the age of 30, so clean that up pronto. Fairly easy to get to, just don't accept anyone as a friend for the next few weeks and lock everythign down.

Stiffed anyone on any bills? Lots of credit cards? History of late payments on bills? Lots of tickets? Changing jobs a lot, job-hopping? Leaving a job because you were asked to leave? Drug usage (hard stuff/illegal stuff)

Go through and do an inventory on yourself and mark down ALL of your nagatives. Would you hire someone like yourself? Do you have a large ego that may get in thhway of giving yourself an honest evaluation? If you can't be honest with yourself, you aren't doing yourself any favors.

background checks Wrote:
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> A Drunk Idiot. Urinating in public, threatening
> team members for trying to stop said urinating in
> public.
>
> Really have no clue, was a black out night. I do
> not drink anymore, but yea, it was pretty bad.

Nicely done! Please tell us you don't own guns.

I know they will not be doing a government type of background check. (no walking around asking neighbors, etc)

It will be your standard background check. I believe a credit check is involved with that. I just want to know if they can see past employment history. Obviously i put on my resume the stuff that is good, and covered up the four months i was with the company i was fired from.

all your other jargon, taking a look at myself and all that is neither here nor there. I made a mistake in my mid twenties, it happened, its over, and I have moved on from that, But I agree, to a hiring company, it does not look good. I guess I was just trying to see if anyone here had insight as to if the employer CAN or CANNOT see where you worked without you telling them.

thanks

Did they ask you for a list of previous employment? I'm not so sure they really care that much if you were a clerk 15 years ago or if you sold clothes at the mall for 6 months back in college. They care more about work related experience/internships in the same field/relevant degrees etc. I don't know how old you are now, but if your mistake that happened in your mid-twenties was awhile ago, I'd just admit to it and call it a youthful mistake. As long as you are upfront and honest and its been awhile since you've been in trouble, it will reflect positively. Unless of course, it's for something serious or anything involving theft/harassment/assault//destruction of property while at your previous employment.

For private organizations, the basic background checks normally simple and are as follows:

Credit Headers - NOT ACTUAL FULL CREDIT CHECK
Employment Verification vs. what you put down (Most of the time this is done by phone).
Education verification
Criminal background check State - rarely Federal.

You need to make sure you get a copy of everything they run as you where suppose to have signed off for them to get that information. If it's for TSC then they will know you worked there and you may or may not be asked why you didn't report it (being 4 years ago for a only for 4 months, play stupid and just say you forgot because it was a temp thing). You may want to call the employer if it's Government and say you forgot a temp job you did for only 4 months ago before they begin the background check. It will make it seem like you are being more honest and you simply forgot

As for the poster above mentioning FB, some background companies will do a social media website check, Yahoo, FB, MySpace, etc but it's rare for private companies to do this and if you set your setting rights, then they can't get to it without your permission on most. Words of wisdom for you

- ANYTHING YOU SAY ONLINE NEVER GOES AWAY.

Of course none of this is free. If the private company is pinching pennies, then they may just do a state criminal check and credit header check and call your previous employer. If it's Uncle Sam, they have no problem spending the money to get it all.

Remember to get a copy of everything, I have seen many in BEA and PI that pulled incorrect information. IRB for example has been to court multiple times for wrong information on a person. It's just like your credit, you need to check it yourself and every few years. Good luck.

Thanks you "BrandonVa" And "Duh-its big business"

I appreciate your insight.

Brandon, What is TSC? Thanks.

I had an FBI come to my house to interview me about a friend. He a lot of questions. I never asked my friend about it but he must of put me down as a reference?

Yes, he put you down as a reference. In my case, I had a government investigator interview me a couple separate times because I was neighbors with those applying for (or renewing) higher security clearances. The investogator probably looked into YOUR background shallowly while checking your friends background.

TSC = Top Secret Clearance

FBI agent - odds are it was as a reference. Background checks for certain agencies that work with Uncle Sam can take as long as a year. Right now they are really behind too. They don't miss anything. They run a known reports against a previous address and they know the neighbors info and speak with them directly (sometimes even when they are not listed as a reference), this includes overseas if the applicant has lived overseas. And once they are done, then someone double checks their work. Imagine the costs that are involved...

Lol you might have been with my current employer. They send everyone to "training" for two weeks where you stay in a hotel/college dorm situation with classes and mock situations but really all you do is learn to be a functional alcoholic and wake up early after drinking all night. Of course there are idiots and do stupid shit and can't handle it and get fired right away. I think they do all that stuff on purpose to weed out the people that have problems before they invest even more into them.


background checks Wrote:
-------------------------------------------------------
> A Drunk Idiot. Urinating in public, threatening
> team members for trying to stop said urinating in
> public.
>
> Really have no clue, was a black out night. I do
> not drink anymore, but yea, it was pretty bad.

First of all, nobody will be coming knocking on your neighboors doors as part of a background check unless you filled out a SF-86 which is a standard form for government clearance. If its a private company, 9 times out of 10 it is a 7 years criminal background, drug test and they MIGHT call your references. If you havent listed the employer that fired you then there is no way of them finding out about it. There is no national database for all your previous employment history. You should be fine excluding that employer, you might have to explain a 4 month employment gap but you can say personal reasons,school, couldnt find employment ect ect. Dont stress over it

background checks Wrote:
-------------------------------------------------------
> WHen a company hires you, then they do a
> background check.. What can they see? What are
> red flags?
>
> If you did not list a job you had four years ago,
> that you only were there for about 4 months, are
> they able to see that? I left it off bc i was
> fired.
>
> Thanks in advance for your help.

If it's for a commercial company, you signed a form allowing them to run the check. Background check companies do not run checks on people without that release. The form should say what kind of checks they run.

Basically, if it's in a database (credit,criminal) it can be found.

as long as your white, you'll be fine
if not, your fucked

Dude, that shit follows you around. I know a guy who, if anyone knew him, or knew of him, in grad school, will not get hired because of his antics. He talks a good talk, and is a major BS artist, but has been fired from his last two jobs.

Depends on what kind of check and who does it. For our small retail company, we use a third party to run the standard criminal and driving records check. It will search nationwide and goes back 7 - 10 years. Then I or someone else, will call your former work. We also do searches on Facebook, YouTube, etc. Come clean with the new folks. We have hired people who were honest upfront. We have never hired someone who lied or "forgot to mention" something in their past.

background checks Wrote:
-------------------------------------------------------
> I completely agree with you. I probably should of
> just put it down, but with this type of job you
> cannot be job hopping, and a four month stay would
> of opened way too many question, bc the company
> that I got let go from is very reputable, and you
> dont just leave a job like that after 4 months,
> and i plane old got fired for being an idiot on
> team trip. Not a good way to go.
>
> That being said, i can bs my way thru the
> interviews and all that, but it is the background
> check that has me shitting bricks over here. It
> is not a secret clearance or anything like that,
> but it is a management position. Guess we will
> see.
>
> Cant they see who you worked for on your credit
> report?


They have very little info on your credit report that says who you worked for, and thee info there is usually very bad.

As far as a job you worked at for 4 months, they probably would not care, they probably would not find out about it, and you can easily say you were taking care of your sick mother during that time period.

Normally, a company can only give relevant information unless you give them permission to give more. Yes he worked here for X dat to Y date. They generally can not go into detail on why you left. Because 1) the person giving the information probably wasn't there so anything said is heresay 2) Saying "he ran through the woods naked on on a company retreat" would reflect bad on the company. They hired you for God's sake. 3) All babies must eat. Them preventing you from getting a job is pretty vindictive.

So unless someone rats you out, or this is for the government who can access your W-2s I would not sweat it.

HR Manager Wrote:
-------------------------------------------------------
> Depends on what kind of check and who does it.
> For our small retail company, we use a third party
> to run the standard criminal and driving records
> check. It will search nationwide and goes back 7
> - 10 years. Then I or someone else, will call
> your former work. We also do searches on
> Facebook, YouTube, etc. Come clean with the new
> folks. We have hired people who were honest
> upfront. We have never hired someone who lied or
> "forgot to mention" something in their past.


You are an idiot.

Everyone fails to mention things that are not relevant to the position being sought. For instance, someone worked as a engineer by day and 7-11 at night to make ends meet. Would that be relevant if he is no longer moonlighting?

I would suggest you look into SHRM or take a few HR classes. A statement you just made not only shows your ignorance but does not bode well for the organization that hired/trusted you.

"It is of vital importance that candidates are to be selected based on merits. Applicants are to be hired based purely on merits such as knowledge, skills, and ability in accordance to the needs of the organization." From an HR Ethics manual. Something I am sure you are unfamiliar with.

Does being an HR person at your company require any training or knowledge? Or did you just go into that position for the power?

Duh-its big business Wrote:
-------------------------------------------------------
> TSC = Top Secret Clearance
>
> FBI agent - odds are it was as a reference.
> Background checks for certain agencies that work
> with Uncle Sam can take as long as a year. Right
> now they are really behind too. They don't miss
> anything. They run a known reports against a
> previous address and they know the neighbors info
> and speak with them directly (sometimes even when
> they are not listed as a reference), this includes
> overseas if the applicant has lived overseas. And
> once they are done, then someone double checks
> their work. Imagine the costs that are
> involved...

Way back in the late 1970's, someone came by the family house from the FBI or something and started asking questions about a former neighbor for a security clearance. A question they asked back then (held over from the Casey days) was something like "did he every support any individual or group that planned to overthrow the United States government."

My Mother answered "yes, I believe he voted for Nixon."

The guy was not amused.

If you want to check what info they have on you, here is an online database:

http://tinyurl.com/4uju4yo

It doesn't really do credit checks(except bankruptcy), but has just about everything else incl arrest/criminal, marriage/divorce, sex offenders and court stuff.

If it's on there then an employer would definitely be able to find it.

FUNdamental Wrote:

>
> Way back in the late 1970's, someone came by the
> family house from the FBI or something and started
> asking questions about a former neighbor for a
> security clearance. A question they asked back
> then (held over from the Casey days) was something
> like "did he every support any individual or group
> that planned to overthrow the United States
> government."
>
> My Mother answered "yes, I believe he voted for
> Nixon."
>
> The guy was not amused.


Yeah, DO NOT joke or make light of anything when talking to these guys/gals. They have zero sense of humor. Don't volunteer anything or ask them any questions. Just answer their questions and be done with it ASAP.

I cannot find myself in most background check websites. I am applied for a job and the company assured me that they were very interested and said that once my background check is all clear we will go on forth with the hiring process.. I don't know exactly how long and how the background check process is.. My former employer did not do a background check on me. I have no criminal records, no nothing.. will they be able to find me? I really need the job. HELP PLEASE!!!

If you are going for your SF86 this website is interesting. http://www.dod.mil/dodgc/doha/industrial/

Some of these things are idiotic:

In light of Applicant’s use of a hallucinogenic drug after he had been granted an interim security clearance and after he had completed his security clearance application, the Judge’s conclusion that Applicant had failed to demonstrate mitigation is sustainable. Some of the Judge’s statements appear inconsistent with his unfavorable decision. However, viewed in light of the record as a whole, these inconsistent statements are harmless error. Adverse decision affirmed. CASE NO: 10-03232.a1

Between January 2006 and September 2007, Applicant stole approximately $8,000 from the Army and Air Force Exchange Service (AAFES). Applicant testified that she committed the thefts due to events in her personal life, including the deaths of her father and brother.