Difference Between Criminal Background Check & Fingerprinting
Fingerprinting is the process of obtaining images of your fingerprints, so that agencies can compare them against other fingerprints gathered by the government. A criminal background check is a search of database records of criminal arrests and convictions.
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Background
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Although a criminal background check may include a request for fingerprinting, it's not a requirement for all criminal records checks. A federal criminal records check requires fingerprinting, but local criminal background records checks often don't.
Considerations
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If you're asked to submit to a criminal background check, you'll need to know whether or not you're also required to submit your fingerprints. Local police stations "roll" fingerprints onto a card for analyzing. Some federal agencies take a digital image rather than using the ink-and-paper method.
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Benefits
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The benefit of taking fingerprints during a criminal background check is that you can better ensure accuracy. Although confusion can happen when two people have the same name and/or date of birth, no two sets of fingerprints are alike.
Time Frame
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Even as you age, your fingerprints remain essentially the same. However, a criminal background check is a snapshot in time--it only covers convictions from the age of 18 until the date the check is made. In most states, juvenile convictions don't appear on a criminal background check.
Fun Fact
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Fingerprints can be used for positive identification--even identical twins have different fingerprints.
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References
- Photo Credit Image by Flickr.com, courtesy of Kevin Dooley
