Conduct an Illinois Background Check

It is quite a common practice to mislead employers by providing incorrect information in the resume and application. To deal with this problem, the background check came into being.

As the public records became readily accessible via the Internet, the practice that was common for federal employment became popular in private companies also. A background check is conducted to look into someone’s past. Usually, the background checks are done prior to hiring someone. If you go online you will find lots of investigating agencies that conduct the search on the behalf of the requesting agencies. However, to ensure the authenticity of the information collected it is recommended to use the government sources.

A background check is no longer limited to the persons applying for federal employment only. There are multiple reasons why would you need an Illinois background check - from professional to personal. Pre-employment screening has become very common now.

Finding an employee with a clean background record makes it easier for the employers as well as Human Resources Department to appoint him or her with peace in mind. Now, people perform background checks as a part of due diligence as well, especially where a huge amount of investments and number of investors are concerned.

Taking national as well as personal security into consideration, a background check has become crucial to recruit people in areas like private and public schools, day care, residential care facilities for elderly or disabled people and in any other sectors like private companies, VISA and immigration processing and so on. 

An Illinois background check may be conducted by many private investigating agencies as well as the Department of Justice. Since the dissemination of public records over the Internet, there has been a surge in applications for background checks. However, there are limits to access these records.

There is certain information that cannot be investigated without the consent of the subject. This includes information related to education, medical history and military history. No school is allowed to issue transcripts of the subject without his or her permission. Similarly, few medical reports, especially those that deal with disability, are not allowed to be released without prior permission.

A background investigation means a complete check of residence, family and friends, educational history, medical history, criminal and incarceration records, any sex offense, liens or outstanding judgments against the subject, credit history, validation of social security number, marital status, name and address, birth date, property owned and bankruptcy records. Illinois background checks are kept confidential to ensure safety and neutrality of the record generated by the investigating agencies.

In 1991, the Act of Uniform Conviction Information became a law in the state of Illinois. According to the act, conviction information and records of criminal history shall be maintained by Illinois State Police, Bureau of Identification and will be made available to the general public. Only conviction information shall be released to the public and that will be done only when applied for by submitting the Conviction Information Request Form. There are two kinds of such forms:  non-fingerprints and fingerprint request form.

Non-Fingerprint Request Form

The form name is ISP6-405B and it is used for initiating a request. This search request will scan the database of Illinois State Police’s criminal history and return with the subject record that matches the request. Name, date of birth, sex and ethnicity are used as identifiers.

A search of the criminal history information with the non-fingerprint method is solely dependant upon the identifiers used. If the person searched has used aliases, then the search would not yield fruitful results, even when the information is there with the computerized record filed with the Illinois State Police. The service charge for the non-fingerprint search is $16. If your check cannot be drawn on any U.S. bank, you will need to pay $30.

Fingerprint Conviction Request Form

The form name for a fingerprint request is ISP6-404B. This conducts a search with the help of a fingerprint sample. This is a more accurate process to research the individual you are looking for as there are no methods of faking fingerprints. If the person is in records, then the search would return with positive results.

However, the charge for fingerprint search is higher than the name and other identifier-based search. The processing fee of a fingerprint search is $20. If the check cannot be drawn on a U.S. bank, you will pay $50. Your local law enforcement agency or the sheriff’s office will help you with fingerprints services.

You can order the request forms from the Internet at http://www.isp.state.il.us/crimhistory/uciaformreq.cfm. Otherwise, you can send a request via mail to: Illinois State Police, Bureau of Identification, 260 North Chicago Street, Joliet, Illinois 60431-1060. You can call (815) 740-5216 between 8 am to 4 pm on all weekdays. Forms must be filled out in compliance with the instructions provided, or else the request will not be processed.

In September 2009, the National Child Protection Act was implemented by Illinois State Police to make sure that children and all those individuals who depend on others for sustenance are safe and protected. This objective is aimed to be reached by conducting Illinois background checks.

Now, even those private organizations that work with and for minors and vulnerable adults have been allowed to access the national database of information laden with national criminal histories compiled by FBI. Illinois State Police have been designated to disseminate the information by electronic means. The authorities believe that this measure will also reduce the overall rate of crime in Illinois State.

There is no limit to how far an employer can look in order to learn about the subject’s background. Certain states as well as FCRA have some regulations like the seven-year rule, which states that certain criminal records cannot be traced back more than seven years.

However, under the Criminal Identification Act’s Section 5.2, any arrest that has not resulted in conviction or arrest records that have been already expunged, sealed or removed cannot be used in an Illinois background check. Unlike California, in Illinois, a background check is not prohibited for a third party. Many private investigation agencies are hired to look into someone’s past before getting into a serious relationship or if someone has inflicted some personal damage to an individual.