A: No, not even the FBI has every county linked into their system. The NCIC (National Crime Information Center) maintains the best and most accurate records; unfortunately you can't get them, unless of course you are a federally insured bank, a defense department contractor, a nuclear power plant, a branch of the government itself or some other such entity.

     Q: What is the difference between and database search and a courthouse search?

     A: A database search is current only up to the date of the last update and is sometimes exclusive or incomplete in information. A courthouse search is done at the county level at the courthouse and is up to date as of the most recent entry in the file. In most states in the U.S. their REAL criminal records are available in some kind of publicly accessible form. These records may be on the internet and may require a subscription and/or fees or acknowledgement of legal permissible purpose for its use, but they are available and are public record. In some jurisdictions the only way to access criminal records is to get them in person at the courthouse level. A thorough criminal record search incorporates both of these forms. If a criminal check consists of solely a database search it may be incomplete and/or not current.

     Q: Where should I check for criminal records on an applicant?

     A: Since there is no such thing as the general public's ability to check every county in the U.S. at one time you should check every county where the applicant has previously lived and currently lives.

     Q: Does InfoQuest perform international criminal checks?

     A: No. Many countries don't make their criminal records available to anyone. In France, Japan, the Philippines and Taiwan, for example, they do not make their criminal records available to third parties (like you or us) to check on someone. In Malaysia, Singapore, Thailand, The Netherlands, Czech Republic and the Dominican Republic, you can get what is called a "Certificate of Good Behaviour", much like the old Clearance Certificate from Britain. It tells you that the person has, or doesn't have a criminal record, but it doesn't tell you what the criminal record is. In some countries, the criminal history reports are not worth the paper they are written on and in some countries the applicant has to get the criminal record themselves.

We can get records from Canada. In fact, we can get what is the equivalent of our FBI records, but the "real" records require fingerprints that are actually taken in the jurisdiction and can take 90+ days.

     Q: When does InfoQuest perform record search requests?

     A: Search requests are accepted seven (7) days a week, 24 hours a day, 365 days a year, via fax or email, however, will only be processed during regular business hours; Monday through Friday 9:00 AM - 5:00 PM central standard time. We observe all Federal Holidays and some state and local holidays.

     Q: How am I billed?

     A: You will need to call us and set up an account and fax or mail us the subscriber forms. Upon completion of the background reports, InfoQuest will mail your company or organization the reports (or, under special circumstances, fax them) and include the bill with the reports. We do not currently accept credit cards, but will accept checks, money orders or cashier's checks.

     Q: How long does it take to get the results?

     A: The average reports take 24-36 hours to be mailed or emailed.