Please Note: The material on this website is provided for informational purposes only. It is not a consumer reporting agency as defined by The Fair Credit Reporting Act and should not be used to determine an individual's eligibility for personal credit or employment, or to assess risk associated with any business transactions such as tenant screening.

Many organizations and individuals have the legal right to perform criminal background checks. These include employers, credit providers and insurance providers. Private persons can also access the publically available information. The question regarding the thoroughness and accuracy of the information kept in the criminal records has always been present. Find out the most important things which you need to know when conducting a search or having a service provider do it for you.
Information Accessibility
Full details on arrests, charges, offenses and convictions are kept in criminal records. However, not all of this information is accessible to the public. The law in the respective jurisdiction determines which details can be viewed by members of the public and which ones can be seen only by authorized personnel such as law enforcement officers and courthouse clerks. Additionally, when checks are ordered for employment screening purposes, the law states exactly which details employers can and cannot receive so that discrimination is prevented.
Given all this, while information is not practically removed from the records, it can be omitted from the reports which are presented to members of the public. In many cases, details on offenses, charges and arrests which have been previously available to the public are made inaccessible at one point. This is most often done for minor offenses after a set period of time from the occurrence of the respective events has passed.
Information Management
There are different types of authorities which are responsible for the management of the information present in the criminal records. Portions of this information can be expunged typically for legal reasons. Some of it can be sealed as well. This is usually the course of action when the person who has committed a criminal offense has to be protected. Only in rare cases, information which is present in the record is dismissed. If you want to get more details on these matters, you will have to read the laws which govern them.
You have to be aware of the technical aspects of the management of the information which is present on these records. Usually, documents are collected from several different institutions. Then they are added to specially designed databases. During this process, technical errors and omissions can occur. These can create great problems. That is why special measures are taken for their reduction to the very possible minimum.
Overall, you can expect criminal records to be accurate and quite thorough as well. You can rest assured that the authorities will never deliberately remove or conceal information which is important for protecting people and assets.