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FBIBackgroundCheck.orgKnowledge base

Glossary

Name-based check

Also called database search · commercial background check

Definition

A search of records by name and identifiers rather than by fingerprints, typically performed by a commercial data provider.

Context

Not the same product as an Identity History Summary and generally not accepted where a police certificate is required. It is included here because the two are routinely conflated in marketing material.

Government sources

Where this term comes from.

  • Identity History Summary Checks

    Federal Bureau of Investigation · reviewed 2026-08-01

    fbi.gov returns 403 to all retrieval, so this page was read from the Internet Archive snapshot of 31 July 2026 (web.archive.org/web/20260731011046). That snapshot carries the “Current Processing Time” block, the $18 fee, and the channeler eligibility restriction quoted on this site.

Related terms

Where this term is used