In short: an employment background check typically shows your identity details, criminal history, employment and education verification, and — for certain jobs — a credit-based report, driving record, or professional-license check. Federal law limits what it can show: under the FCRA, most non-conviction and negative records older than seven years are off-limits, and everything reported must be accurate. If a check shows something wrong — or something that isn’t yours — you can dispute it and, when it costs you a job, recover damages.
What a standard employment background check includes
Nearly every screening report starts with an identity check — your name history, past addresses, and a Social Security number trace — because that is how the screener decides which records are “yours.” Then comes the criminal search: county and federal court records, state repositories, and sex-offender registries. Most employers add employment verification (dates and titles) and education verification (degrees and attendance). None of this comes from one magic database; screeners like the ones in our background-check company guides assemble it from courts and data brokers, fast and cheap — which is exactly where errors creep in.
What it shows only for certain jobs
Some checks go further. Jobs involving money often include an employment credit report — a modified credit history without your score. Driving jobs pull your motor-vehicle record. Licensed professions verify the license; government and security roles go deeper. An employer needs your written consent first — a standalone FCRA disclosure, not fine print buried in the application.
What a background check legally cannot show
The FCRA’s seven-year rule (15 U.S.C. § 1681c) bars reporting arrests that did not lead to conviction, civil suits, judgments, and paid tax liens older than seven years (bankruptcies: ten). Convictions can generally be reported without a federal time limit — though many states are stricter — and the seven-year limits fall away for higher-salary positions under a statutory exception. Sealed and expunged records should not appear at all. “Should not” is the operative phrase: stale, sealed, and expunged records showing up anyway is one of the most common screening errors we see.
The errors that show up anyway
The worst background-check mistakes aren’t about what’s legally reportable — they’re about accuracy. Common-name mismatches attach someone else’s criminal record to your report (a cousin of the mixed credit file problem). Expunged cases resurface from stale databases. A dismissed charge appears as a conviction. Identity theft plants records you’ve never heard of. Each is an FCRA accuracy violation by the screening company — disputable and, when it costs you a job, actionable.
How to see what they’ll see — before the employer does
You don’t have to wait and hope. You can request your own file from the major screeners (our company guides explain how for each), pull your credit reports free at AnnualCreditReport.com, and check your county court records yourself. A pre-application audit catches errors while there’s still time to fix them.
Your rights before an employer says no
If an employer intends to reject you based on the report, it must first send a pre-adverse-action notice with a copy of the report and a summary of your rights, and give you a real chance to dispute before the decision is final — skipping that step is itself a violation. The FTC’s plain-English guide, Employer Background Checks and Your Rights, is worth a read. Use the window: dispute in writing immediately (our free dispute letter template adapts directly) and tell the employer you are disputing.
Frequently asked questions
Do background checks show credit scores?
No — employment credit checks show a modified report, never your score.
How far back do background checks go?
Generally seven years for most negative non-conviction records under the FCRA; convictions can go back further under federal law, with state laws sometimes stricter.
Do dismissed charges show up?
They shouldn’t after seven years — and dismissed charges reported as convictions, at any age, are accuracy violations you can dispute.
Can I see my own background check first?
Yes — you can request your file from the screening companies directly; our company guides explain how.
What if a background check error cost me the job?
That’s exactly when the FCRA’s damages provisions matter — talk to a lawyer; the review is free and the violator pays the fees when you win.
If a background check error is standing between you and a job, our background check errors practice — part of our FCRA practice — can help. Free case review or 855-996-6342; no fee unless we win.