For an industry like the background verification that handles such sensitive data, confidentiality is of vital importance. Background screening companies have personal data of thousands of employees and applicants in their care, and it is their responsibility to ensure that it is not misused in any way and does not fall into the wrong hands.
Background screening companies should be able to confidently ensure data security to their clients. This is crucial not only for legal and ethical reasons but also because of proprietary considerations. If, due to any reason, the security of data is compromised, all the three main parties involved are severely affected negatively.
First, the individual’s sensitive personal information is leaked and his/her personal reputation could be tarnished. Second, the employer loses the personal information of its employees and candidates to competitors, and third, the background verification company finds itself in hot water. Not only does it result in a major financial loss for them, it can destroy their reputation (which is extremely difficult to build in an industry as sensitive and competitive as the background screening industry) just like that. Even a single mistake could cost a background verification company its entire credit.
Ask yourself the important questions
As a company whose job is to effectively manage and verify sensitive information, every background check vendor must ask itself the following questions to keep itself in check when it comes to data security
· Which physical and logical barriers does my company face regarding data access? It is imperative that your company has a strict procedure for accessing any kind of data associated to pre-employment screening services. Ask yourself just how strict and secure your current procedure is, how secure your technology is, and what steps must be taken for anyone, even someone who is authorized, to be able to access such data. At the same time, you should also consider various factors within your company that could prevent the adoption of such procedures.
· Can data be accessed only by authorized personnel in the company? In your background check company, make sure that only people who have to know have access to data. In other words, provide data access only to those employees who require the data in order to do their job. This acts as a strong firewall. For example, your verification team does not need to know the name and other certain details of clients they are conducting a pre-employment screening service for.
· Who in the company can access any negative report? Negative reports are reports that flag any inconsistency in the information that an applicant has provided. In other words, if an applicant provides false information in their resume, then the negative report, after a thorough background check, will show it. Make sure that such negative reports are strictly available only on a need-to-know basis.
Educating the employers
It is important to realize that, as a background screening company, you must educate your clients and sensitize them to the fact they too must be careful in sharing sensitive and personal data of their employees and applicants. In a nutshell, they do not have to share more than what is required. Strictly abiding by industry and government rules and regulations is a must in the background screening industry. However, it is also about organisational culture, and how effectively and strongly your company insists on respecting data security and confidentiality. At AuthBridge, we encourage a culture every single employee understands the gravity of mishandling of sensitive data. We are an ISO certified company that strictly maintains the data security and confidentiality of a candidate. To know more, book an appointment with our expert today.
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