Identity management is something that everybody should be doing. In our digital age when so much could go wrong based on a typo or someone trying to play a joke, staying on top of things is the best thing you can do for yourself. So how do you do that?
Don’t wait for someone else to do a background check on you to see what they will turn up. Do the background check on yourself!
Start where you’d start with anything else: Google. Google your name and see what comes up? Is it good stuff? Do you see anything wrong or false or otherwise unpleasant? Take steps to correct the information or get it taken down. This can be time consuming but will be worth it in the long run.
Move on to social media: how are your privacy settings? Are they as strong as they could be? Do you approve of all of the photos and posts in which you’ve been tagged? If you find rude or offensive material, ask that the tag be removed.
If you have a blog or other type of website, do a link search to see who is linking to you and what people are saying about the site you run. Hopefully it will all be positive but even negative feedback can be turned in your favor—correct problems, notify site owners of broken links or false data, etc.
Do a LexisNexis search on yourself. LexisNexis is a fantastic research tool—it’s used by journalists to dig up all sorts of information on every topic and person under the sun. You’ll find out more about yourself through the Lexis Nexis system than you will through a simple Google search.
Check your credit report: make sure that any errors are corrected.
If you have the time and the funds why not pay to have an actual background check run on yourself? This way you can make sure that only true information is printed there.
Knowing how to do a background check isn’t only important for your own reputation. This is a skill that can help protect you when you need to hire a lawyer, a nanny, a doctor, etc. Knowing how to look into someone you’ll be trusting with your and your family’s livelihood is important. It will help you make sure that you’re only hiring people who are trustworthy, reliable and not hiding a felony conviction.
