Public records search
An instant scan of more than 200,000 open sources worldwide, covering court records, sanctions and enforcement lists, watchlists, sex offender registries and adverse media. It will not tell you whether to hire someone. It will tell you what to ask about.
- 200,000+Open sources scanned
- 200+Countries covered at once
- MinutesUsually back the same day you order
PRS-4471A clear record is not the same as a clear picture
A criminal record check answers one narrow question: does a police record exist in one country. It is a useful fact. It is not a picture of a person.
Two things follow from that, and both of them cost employers money.
One
A clear result is not the same as no risk
Someone with nothing on file may still hold a regulatory ban, sit on a sanctions list, or be the subject of published reporting that any candidate would expect you to have seen. A clean criminal check will not surface any of it.
Two
A conviction is not a reason not to hire
Plenty of strong candidates have something in their past. If the only thing you know is that a record exists, the safe move looks like passing, and you lose good people to a fact you never understood.
Knowing the circumstances, the date and the context is what lets you make an actual decision instead of a defensive one.
That is what this search is for. It widens the picture past the one country and the one police database, so the conversation you have with the candidate is an informed one rather than a guess in either direction.
We are not going to pretend it produces a verdict. The search exposes what has been published. What you do with it is your call to make.
What it searches
An instant scan across more than 200,000 open and published sources in over 200 countries. These are the categories it reports on.
Public court records
Civil and criminal filings published by courts and court aggregators.
Public criminal history
Criminal matters that appear in published and open sources, which is a different and wider net than a police record check.
Fraud watchlists
Published listings covering identity theft, embezzlement, securities and investment fraud, and related matters.
Known affiliations
Politically exposed persons listings, corporate directorships and officer records, and other published affiliations.
Global sanctions and enforcement
International sanctions and enforcement listings, including OFAC.
Public safety
Published public safety and enforcement notices.
Sex offender registries
Domestic and international registries, where those registries are public.
Global clearance
Published clearance and debarment listings.
Public profile and adverse media
News, published articles and other open sources connected to the name.
The report also collects any published employment, residential and education history connected to the name, which is often the fastest way to tell whether a match is actually your candidate.
Three things a result can say
Nothing published was found in that category against the name. It means the scan came back empty, not that the person has been vetted.
The category returned no data at all. Common for registries that are not public in a given country.
Something published carries this name, or a close variation of it. It is a name comparison, not a confirmed identification. The next section is about what to do with one.
Results are usually available within minutes. Where something needs verifying, it can take longer.
How to read a possible match
This is the part most providers skip, so here it is in full. A possible match compares what the candidate told us against what has been published. It is matched on name. It has not confirmed that the two people are the same person, and quite often they are not.
Example 1
Not your candidate
Same name, spelled identically. No date of birth on the published record, no shared address, and no connection between your candidate and the foundation. Two different people who happen to be named the same thing.
This is the most common kind of possible match, and the reason the report gives you the source and the underlying detail rather than just a flag.
What you do: note it, close it, move on. There is nothing to raise with the candidate, because nothing connects them to it.
Example 2
Correctly matched, and not a problem
This one is your candidate. A directorship or officer record is a published fact, not an allegation. In a regulated sector you may need to note it. In most roles it is simply true and irrelevant.
The same applies to politically exposed persons listings, which show up in this category and record that someone holds or held a public position. That is a due diligence flag, not a finding against anybody.
What you do: confirm the role, record it if your sector requires it, and carry on with the hire.
Example 3
Worth a conversation
Enough overlap to be worth asking about, not enough to conclude anything. Same city, same name, no date of birth to confirm it either way.
There may be a straightforward explanation, or it may be a different Fletcher Reede.
What you do: ask the candidate. Do not decide first and ask second.
Aliases
A note on aliases
The report also lists any alternative names published against a record. A candidate who applies as Andy Kaufman and appears in published sources as Tony Clifton is not hiding anything.
Legal names, married names, anglicised names and professional names all show up here.
What you do: treat an alias as something to confirm, not something to be suspicious of.
All four, one pattern
The search exposes the sources. It shows you what was published, where it came from, and what it does and does not have attached to it. Deciding what that means for your hire is your judgement to make, and the report is built to give you enough to make it properly.
It runs on day one
The public records search returns in minutes, which makes it the first thing back on almost any file. A Canadian criminal record check takes about 15 minutes. An international check can take days or weeks. This one is already done.
That timing is what makes it useful. It covers everywhere at once, while the country-level checks are still running, so you are not sitting on a candidate with no information at all.
It also costs a fraction of the checks it runs beside, which is why most clients add it to an order rather than run it on its own.
One candidate, three checks
Relative turnaround on one file. The wide search finishes first.
What employers usually run alongside this
A public records search widens the picture. It does not replace the checks that answer specific questions. Here is what most clients pair it with, and why.
If you add one thing, add identity verification.
Everything on this page rests on a name. A public records search matches published material against the name and date of birth the candidate gave you, so if those are wrong, a clear result means nothing and a possible match is unreadable. Identity verification is what makes the input trustworthy.
Identity verification
It confirms the name the search runs on
More than 13,500 government document types are read and validated, in Latin and non-Latin alphabets, and matched to a live selfie.
This is the one that pairs best with a public records search, because the two work on the same field from opposite ends. The search looks outward from a name. Identity verification proves the name belongs to the person in front of you.
Included in the price of a Canadian criminal record check. Available on its own.
Canadian criminal record check
For the police record, which this is not
Run against Canadian police records through an accredited police partner, with most results back in about 15 minutes.
A public records search covers published sources. It does not search the RCMP National Repository of Criminal Records, and no amount of open-source material substitutes for the official record. If you need the police record, this is the check that gets it.
Reference checks
For the part no database holds
Structured written answers from referees, with automated reminders so you are not chasing anyone.
A public records search tells you what has been published about someone, which for most candidates is very little. A reference check tells you what it was like to work with them, which is the thing that actually predicts how the hire goes. Between the two you have the published record and the lived one.
What this search is not
It is not a criminal record check
It searches published and open sources. It does not search the RCMP National Repository of Criminal Records. If you need a Canadian criminal record check, run one.
It is not generally available for candidates in the United States
The search is not available for US applicants, with limited exceptions. If it cannot be run it returns as unable to complete rather than silently returning nothing.
It is not a decision
Results are a comparison between what the candidate provided and what has been published. Nothing here should be the sole basis for an adverse decision, and every possible match should be verified with the candidate before you act on it.
How it works
Add it to the order
Select the public records search alongside whatever else you are running on that candidate. All you need is a name and an email address.
The candidate consents
They receive a secure link, give consent and confirm their details.
Results appear in your dashboard
Usually within minutes. Where something needs verifying, it can take longer.
The public records search is available self-serve from your dashboard and through the API, so you can trigger it from your own product or ATS and pull the result back the same way. Background screening API
Get startedQuestions we get asked
What is a public records search?
What do I need to run one?
How long does it take?
What does a possible match mean?
Can I make a hiring decision based on a result?
Is it the same as a criminal record check?
Can I run it on a candidate in the United States?
Can I run it through an API?
Get the context before you make the call
Add a public records search to any order and have the result back in minutes. No subscription, no minimum, no contract.