It’s true that there are some employers that check your credit report as part of a background check before hiring. This might be a common practice if you work with money, if you are working in a security capacity, or if you will have access to proprietary information. Some employers might worry that a poor credit report might be an indication of money problems — and vulnerability to bribes.
So, while there are perfectly legitimate reasons that some employers may want to check your credit report, you need to be careful about some employers who may not be employers at all; they may be scammers.
Employer Credit Check Scam
In this scam, someone posing as a prospective employer asks you to sign up for a credit report. In some cases, the request might be in the job ad. In others, you may respond to a listing, only to have the “employer” direct you to a specific site. In many cases, the site you are directed to is a “free” site. However, the fine print indicates that you have to sign up for some sort of monitoring service and provide your credit card number. In the case of this scam, there are two main ways this can play out:
- The person you are corresponding with isn’t really hiring, and isn’t a legitimate employer. Instead, he or she is just trying to get you to pay for the service, which might result in a commission for him or her. You aren’t really applying for a job, and you pay for a credit report, or sign up for a service to get your “free” report, for nothing.
- You have just given away important personal financial information. In some cases, these types of scams are phishing attempts to get your Social Security number and other sensitive information that can be used to take advantage of you.
In either case, you have to be careful. Legitimate employers may ask for your credit report, but they shouldn’t be sending you to such web sites. You can even offer to get your own credit report, via one of the three major credit bureaus. You can use www.annualcreditreport.com if you still have the ability to get a free report in a 12-month period. You can even offer to pay to retrieve your report from one of the bureaus. That way, you can black out you Social Security number and other sensitive information. A legitimate employer won’t insist that you use a specific web site not owned by one of the three major credit bureaus.
Also, be wary of “employers” that ask for your credit score. Employers are supposed to only look at your credit report; they aren’t supposed to ask for your credit score.
Bottom Line
Some employers will ask for a credit check as part of the hiring process. However, you need to be careful, and on the alert for signs of a scam. Offer to get a report (even at your own expense) from one of the three major credit bureaus, and gauge the reaction. If you are being pressured to use a specific, “unofficial” site, but careful.