Outsourcing background screening can accelerate hiring, reduce administrative burden, and improve the candidate experience, but only if your partner delivers more than a smart interface.
With tech-first platforms and AI-powered solutions flooding the market, many look impressive on the surface. But behind the scenes, some fail to meet even the most basic compliance, data protection, and verification standards.
Here is a 6-point checklist to help you separate promise from risk and make a confident, compliant choice.
1. Are they screening experts or just a tech facade?
A polished interface might streamline the user journey, but if your provider lacks accreditation, regulatory understanding, or in-house screening expertise, that slick user interface becomes a liability.
Some providers act purely as front-ends, passing data to third parties with little visibility or control. They are not registered with the appropriate bodies and often lack the depth to advise clients on what is legally permissible across different countries, sectors, or role types.
Ask who is ultimately responsible for ensuring your checks are accurate, compliant, and defensible, and whether your provider has the expertise to advise you when it matters.
We have seen serious cases where references marked as verified turned out to be unverified Gmail or Outlook addresses, sometimes even belonging to the candidates themselves.
This opens the door to self-verification and creates compliance risks, particularly in regulated industries such as healthcare or education.
Work with providers who use pre-validated referencing databases, supported by manual verification where needed.
Make sure your provider does not rely solely on candidate-supplied data and ask how they prevent manipulation or false submissions.
Some providers omit likeness checks, leaving you to verify whether the candidate matches the identity used during the check. Others offer no real-time fraud detection or guidance when documents do not meet Home Office standards.
Identity fraud is evolving fast, with AI-generated deepfakes and manipulated media already being used to bypass digital onboarding journeys. To stay ahead, a trusted screening partner should have safeguards in place such as deepfake detection, liveness checks, and biometric matching to ensure it is a real person going through the process.
By ensuring the process is robust and fit for modern hiring ultimately provides employers with a statutory excuse in the event of a dispute.
Look for fraud prevention features that reflect today’s risks, not yesterdays. If your provider is not detecting deepfakes, they are leaving the door open.
It is not uncommon for errors in names or aliases to delay DBS results or cause compliance failures. In some cases, providers are not even Registered or Responsible Organisations, meaning they rely on external firms to complete this critical task.
Working with a registered Responsible Organisation can reduce delays and ensure accuracy from the start. Excellent providers may also run pre-check validations which in turn reduce the risk of data input errors.
Ask whether your provider is officially recognised by the DBS and how they handle discrepancies, flagged details, and manual errors.
In an industry that handles sensitive personal data, high-profile breaches have exposed how vulnerable some platforms really are. When screening systems lack proper controls, your candidates' information and your brand reputation are both at risk.
Question whether the provider takes a proactive and multi-layered approach to security. Ask whether they maintain the recognised standards, conduct regular external audits, and embed compliance throughout every process. Secure systems should not be a differentiator. They should be the baseline.
Do not wait to find out the hard way. Ask how data is stored and how security is tested. Look for a provider who treats data security as non-negotiable.
A poor experience does not just frustrate applicants. It delays onboarding and risks losing great hires. And while some providers claim automation or AI solves this, we have seen journeys where candidates are left without guidance, support, or even clarity on what to do next.
A good candidate experience should be designed for real people, accessible via any device, offer live updates, clear steps, and support. From accessibility features to multilingual guidance, it’s important every candidate can complete the journey smoothly and with confidence.
Ask how the provider supports candidates with different needs, devices, and languages. Ask how they reduce confusion and prevent drop-off.
Background screening is a critical part of your hiring process. It protects your people, supports compliance, and upholds your brand’s integrity. It deserves the same level of scrutiny as any other core business decision.
Choosing the right provider means looking past the sales pitch and asking the right questions. It is not about who has the flashiest tech. It is about who you can trust to get it right, time and time again.
The risks are real, but so is the opportunity to get it right. Choose a screening partner who brings clarity, rigour, and real-world expertise to every check. Talk to Giant Screening.