Knowing where to get a background check begins with identifying why the report is needed. A personal criminal history review, an employment screening, a professional licensing check, and a general people search are different processes. They do not necessarily use the same sources or follow the same laws.

Choosing an unsuitable provider can produce a report that lacks the required information or cannot legally be used for the intended decision. Before paying for anything, confirm the purpose, required search type, geographic coverage, and whether a government agency or regulated consumer reporting company must handle the request.

Where to Get a Background Check Based on Your Needs

There is no single provider that is appropriate for every situation. Use this route map to identify the best starting point.

Deciding where to get a background check comes down to selecting the source legally authorized for your intended use. While general online searches offer convenience, regulated decisions require official, purpose-specific record providers.

Start With the Purpose, Not the Provider

Before choosing a website or agency, write down the decision the report is meant to support.

Ask these questions:

1. Is the report for your own record review?
2. Did an employer or licensing agency request it?
3. Are fingerprints required?
4. Does the request specify a government agency or approved vendor?
5. Will the report affect employment, housing, credit, or insurance?
6. Is the search only for lawful, non-regulated informational research?
7. Which states, counties, or federal jurisdictions matter?

These questions help prevent ordering the wrong type of report. If an agency supplied instructions, follow those instructions rather than purchasing a separate online search.

Option 1: Request Your FBI Identity History Summary

Individuals can request a copy of their own Identity History Summary from the FBI. This summary is sometimes called a rap sheet, although the FBI uses the formal name Identity History Summary.

The FBI requires fingerprints because the records in its criminal history system are associated with fingerprint submissions. A request can generally be made directly through the FBI or through an FBI-approved channeler.

This route can be useful when you want to:

• Review your own FBI-maintained criminal history information
• Identify information that may need correction
• Obtain a fingerprint-based federal record summary
• Satisfy a process that specifically accepts an FBI Identity History Summary

An FBI Identity History Summary is not automatically a complete state-level background check. The FBI explains that it may not contain all information held separately by state repositories. It also should not be treated as a replacement for a screening process required by an employer, licensing board, or other agency.

Option 2: Use Your State Criminal History Repository

Each state maintains its own process for criminal history record requests. The responsible office may be the state police, department of public safety, department of justice, or state bureau of investigation.

Depending on the state and request type, the process may use:

• A name-based search
• Fingerprint submission
• An online request portal
• A mailed form
• An approved third-party fingerprint vendor
• Authorization from the person being searched

Check the official state government website before submitting personal information or payment. Confirm whether the result is certified, whether fingerprints are required, and who is permitted to request the record.

A state repository search generally focuses on information maintained by that state. It should not automatically be described as a complete nationwide search.

Option 3: Search Official Court Records

Court records can help verify a specific case, charge, filing, or disposition. Depending on the jurisdiction, records may be available through:

• County clerk websites
• State court portals
• Courthouse terminals
• Federal PACER records
• Written requests to the court clerk
• In-person courthouse searches

Court searches are most useful when you already know the likely jurisdiction. Someone may have records in multiple counties or states, so searching one court does not establish that no other records exist.

Public access also varies. Some documents may be unavailable online, restricted, sealed, expunged, incomplete, or accessible only through the court clerk.

A public record should still be checked carefully. Match names, birth details where legally available, case numbers, filing dates, and final dispositions before connecting a record to a person.

Option 4: Follow the Employer’s Screening Process

If the background check is for employment, the employer should identify the screening provider and request the appropriate authorization. Applicants generally should not select an unrelated people-search website and submit that report as a substitute.

Employment reports obtained from consumer reporting agencies are regulated by the Fair Credit Reporting Act. Depending on the location, state and local laws may impose additional requirements involving consent, timing, reportable information, individualized review, or adverse action.

A regulated employment-screening provider should have procedures for:

• Obtaining required authorization
• Matching records to the correct person
• Following applicable reporting restrictions
• Giving candidates access to their reports
• Investigating disputes
• Supporting required adverse-action notices

ClearCheck is not an employment-screening provider and cannot be used for employment decisions.

Option 5: Contact the Licensing or Regulatory Agency

Professional licenses and regulated roles may require a specific type of criminal history check. Examples can include healthcare, education, childcare, security, transportation, and other positions governed by state or federal rules.

The requesting agency may specify:

• The approved fingerprint provider
• The required identification or routing number
• Whether a photograph is needed
• The state and federal databases searched
• How results must be delivered
• The rescreening schedule
• Whether an exemption process is available

Do not assume that fingerprints taken for one purpose can be reused for another. The agency receiving the results and the legal authority for the search matter.

Option 6: Use ClearCheck for General Informational Research

If your reason for asking where to get a background check involves lawful, non-regulated people-search research, ClearCheck’s informational report service is one available option for searches involving U.S. persons.

ClearCheck describes reports that may include information such as:

• Aliases
• Address history
• Phone and email consistency
• Criminal-record search results
• Watchlist and sanctions results
• Digital footprint references
• Social profile references

The availability and completeness of information can vary by source and jurisdiction. A returned result should be reviewed against available identifiers rather than accepted solely because a similar name appears.

General people-search databases provide informational reports for personal diligence rather than FCRA-regulated screening. ClearCheck is not a consumer reporting agency, and its reports cannot be used for employment decisions, tenant screening, credit eligibility, insurance underwriting, or other decisions governed by federal screening laws.

How to Evaluate an Online Provider

A professional-looking website does not prove that a provider is suitable for your intended purpose. Review the service before submitting identifying information.

Avoid services that promise guaranteed accuracy, guaranteed nationwide completeness, or instant access to every criminal record. No legitimate public-record system contains every possible record in one perfectly current database.

Warning Signs Before You Pay

Be cautious if a provider:

• Does not explain its intended uses
• Claims that one search covers every courthouse
• Guarantees that no records are missing
• Hides recurring billing terms
• Does not provide a privacy policy
• Requests unnecessary sensitive information
• Claims a general people search is automatically suitable for hiring
• Does not identify a support or dispute process
• Uses “FCRA compliant” without explaining the regulated service offered

Before deciding where to get a background check, verify the website address and read the service limitations. For government requests, start from an official .gov website rather than an advertisement or unfamiliar third-party page.

Review the Report Carefully

Regardless of the source, inspect the returned information before relying on it.

Confirm:

• The full name and known aliases
• Available identifying details
• The correct state and county
• Case numbers
• Filing and disposition dates
• Whether charges were dismissed or resolved
• Whether records appear to belong to another person
• When each search was completed
• Which sources were unavailable

A record match is not automatically proof of identity or wrongdoing. Similar names, incomplete dispositions, and outdated source data can create misleading results.

If information appears wrong, contact the organization that prepared the report and, when necessary, the agency or court responsible for the underlying record.

Conclusion

Your purpose determines where to get a background check. Use the FBI for your own Identity History Summary, an official state repository for state criminal history information, court systems for specific case records, an authorized consumer reporting agency for regulated screening, or the designated agency for licensing and fingerprint requirements.

For lawful, non-regulated people searches, ClearCheck provides quick access to public and third-party databases. Note that ClearCheck reports are strictly informational and cannot be used for employment, tenant screening, credit eligibility, insurance underwriting, or other FCRA-regulated decisions.