BLOG

A Maryland man learned the hard way that his background check contained data for a Florida resident who has multiple criminal convictions.

Same Name. Same Birthdate.

Maryland resident Christopher Jenkins is dealing with an unusual situation. He shares the same name and date of birth with a man who lives in Florida. That may be somewhat common, but it's causing problems for the MD-based Jenkins.

The Christopher Jenkins from Florida has multiple criminal convictions including marijuana possession and grand theft auto. Those convictions were inadvertently attributed to the Christopher Jenkins from Maryland in a background check report.

Christopher Jenkins - the one who lives in MD - has applied for jobs and had other experiences that require a background check. He's had a difficult time dealing with the fact that his report includes criminal records that belong to someone else.

Coping with this Issue

Jenkins realizes that he could miss out on employment and other opportunities because of the mistaken identity. He admitted this is an ongoing source of stress and depression for him. To help prevent additional problems, Jenkins collected a few useful documents:

• A notarized affidavit that addresses his mistaken identity case.
• A letter that was issued by the Florida Department of Law Enforcement to confirm he is not the person who has a criminal record.
• A copy of his fingerprints.

Jenkins brings these documents with him most everywhere he goes just in case he must prove that he does not have a criminal record.

How Backgrounds Online Helps Avoid Identity Mistakes

At Backgrounds Online, we take numerous precautions to avoid scenarios like this one. Before we start a background investigation, we use several data points to confirm the subject's identity:

• Authorization: The person we screen must personally provide permission for us to run a background check.
• Full Name: This includes first, last and middle. If someone doesn't have a middle name, we offer an easy way to let us know. We ask for the person's full legal name – exactly as it is on their photo ID.
• Date of Birth: We require the person's birth day, month and year.
• Social Security Number: This is a unique identifier that helps us pinpoint the correct person.
• Contact Information: We ask for the person's address and phone number.

If Your Background Check is Incorrect

It doesn't happen often, but now and then a background check contains incorrect information. If this occurs, we have a system in place to help.

The person who was screened can start by filing a dispute. We provide a simple form that requests the individual's name, email address, phone number and the name of the company to which they applied. Optionally, the person can give us the reason for their dispute.

Once we have this information, our team of screening experts launches an investigation. If an error is discovered and revisions are made, we send an updated report to both the individual and the organization that initially requested the background check.

We hope Charles Jenkins is able to resolve his case of mistaken identity. If you are curious or concerned about what might be on your background check, you can find out by running a personal report from our sister site IAmScreened.com.