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Think Employee Background Checks are a waste of time? Think again!

So you think an Employee Background Check is a waste of your time? Here are some alarming stories for you:

A CANDIDATE WHO HID HIS DEPLORABLE BACKGROUND

One of our clients had interviewed an impressive candidate who had done well in the interview and had all the skills for the job. But the reference list he provided seemed ambiguous which included work experiences from much former jobs and did not provide any details of his recent employers for the client to verify the authenticity. We were in a perplexed situation unable to identify whether this was a red flag in our pre-employment screening (recruitment) process or did our candidate simply lack the skills to put together a credible reference list?

To further the hiring process we had recommended the client to ask their prospective job applicant to provide relevant information of his two recent managers for background verification to which he obliged and that made him appear to be reliable.

However, this was a short-lived impression since after connecting with the line managers we discovered that this candidate had been fired by both of his last employers for theft and fraud following with jail time for those cases.

Imagine if we, like some employers, wouldn’t make an effort to go an extra mile to check employee references, conduct thorough pre-employment investigation and make sure that each and every provided information is reliable only to put the corporation at the verge of reputational risk?

An open-ended question for our readers! Would your employee background screening practices have kept this from happening to you, or would this guy now be working down the hall from you, swindling you too?

The lesson from this incident clearly is: Don’t limit yourself only to the candidate’s list of references. If the candidate has offered peers or personal references rather than managers, ask to be put in touch with the specific people you want to talk to. Call the main switchboard numbers rather than the direct number you were given. For all you know, the candidate could have given you a friend’s phone number so the friend can pose as the former boss. Ask the right questions. If you just run through a perfunctory list of questions, you may never get to the most useful information. References are only a waste of time if you treat them like just an item to check off your list, rather than as a genuinely valuable part of your assessment process.

Downside of Negligent Hiring

Recruiters should also have a clear understanding of the skills an applicant needs to possess to succeed in their job role. AJ Silberman-Moffitt, senior editor at search marketing agency Tandem Buzz, learned just how wrong things can go when the wrong candidate is hired while she was training her replacement after accepting a promotion. “Because she worked in a position with the same title as mine, there was no reason to think she would not know how to use the necessary tools and software,” Silberman-Moffitt said. “She answered everything appropriately in the interview, and the HR manager and I hired her,” according to a report in the businessnewsdaily.com.

Once the new hire accepted the offer, it quickly became evident she didn’t have the skill set needed to do the job. “When she started, and I began to train her, it was like a deer staring into headlights,” Silberman-Moffitt recalls. “Even the simplest tasks, such as entering information into Excel, were difficult for her. It seemed that traffic at an agency and a television station were not as similar as I thought they would be. “The recruitment ended in defeat, resulting in wasted time and money, Silberman-Moffitt said. “Ultimately, she was let go because she couldn’t grasp the job.” During the hiring process, consider giving applicants an assessment or a test. Aptitude tests and projects aren’t always necessary, but these procedures evaluate whether the candidate can perform the responsibilities of the role. If you use any software or tools that are central to the role, it’s best to ask targeted questions about the applicant’s experience with them.

Why an Employee Background Vetting is an Indispensable Recruitment Tool

Employee Background check concepts are inescapable for your organisation if you are looking to minimise risks surrounding a bad hire. The concept of pre-employment screening has become one of the most significant phases in the recruitment process.

The escalating figure of crime scenes and fraudulence incidents justifies why organisations take up this step. Within the dynamic business environment we’re operating in, corporations are now more inclined towards being vigilant of the quality of employees they are hiring. Specifically, the human resource managers are strategizing to reduce employee turnover and burnout rate thereby increasing retention of competent employees. With the vision of achieving a sustainable workplace environment, pre-employment screening and comprehensive background checks are becoming an essential instrument to welcome and retain the finest possible.

The concept of Employee Background Check

An Employee Background Check is a worthwhile concept as employers strive to have the best pick from the candidates who show up for the recruitment process. After the interview sessions are over, a minimum of two weeks is required to get through the employee background screening procedure before you can finalise the hires. Since this procedure requires a thorough knowledge of regulatory compliance and investigative analytical skills, corporations outsource this service to the industrial experts to conduct a comprehensive verification of employee’s academic, professional and even social presence. After the employer is gratified with the check, the employee is offered an appointment letter to join them.

CRI Group’s EmploySmart™ can be tailored into specific screening packages to meet the requirements of each specific position within your organisation.

Download our EmploySmart brochure or get a free quote to ensure a safe work environment for all.

Advantages of an Employee Background Check

Organisations carry out such checks due to a myriad of reasons. Some of these include:

Validating the resume
Learning about the nature of the candidate
Behaviour at past offices
Learning about criminal experience

What to include in Employee Background Checks?

History of employment: Verify the references given by the candidate as it confirms their behavioural and working patterns with previous employers.
Criminal background: It is essential to confirm that the candidate does not have a criminal history.
Credit history: Knowing the credit rating of your candidate is also important as this reveals the integrity of the employees.
Terror Watch List: For the businesses running in countries like the USA, checking the Terror Watch List against names of their candidates is especially critical.
Checking Social Security: Organisations should check the legitimacy of Social Security Numbers of candidates. This will also confirm if the candidate has been using other names.
Checking public/court records: This is done to check if the candidate has been implicated in any sort of court proceedings or not.
Reference checks: There are two types of reference Employee Background Checks: personal and employment. Both facilitate in confirming the integrity, reliability, steadiness, and personality of the employee.
Checking Sex Offender Registry: A Sex Offender Registry check must be conducted as well so you don’t endanger others, especially in roles surrounding children and other susceptible individuals, by hiring a sexual predator.
Education check: This is carried out to determine the authenticity of the various credentials provided by the candidate you are planning to recruit.
Driving Records: If your candidate is required to drive a company-owned vehicle, then checking driving records and license is essential for you.
Record of Military Service: You need to pay attention to some key measures while hiring a candidate with a military service record. That is why checking the military service records of your candidates is also important.
Compensation Record: Checking the candidate’s compensation claims from past employers is also significant before hiring an employee.

In conducting employee background checks, there are some golden rules that one needs to observe to avoid any legal complications. These do and don’ts include but are not limited to:

Do’s

Having a consistent background checks policy and detailing how the policy should be used.
Getting legal advice on how to conduct background checks under the local legal framework.
Giving the applicants a chance to clear up any faults or misconstructions appearing on their documentations and during the interview process.
Employing a Background Check service provider who is compliant with the legal frameworks of your region
Understanding the difference between background checks vs investigative consumer reports.

Don’ts

Avoid background checks on an applicant-by-applicant basis. The checks should be carried out for everyone.
Avoid making the assumption that some parts of the background check process are routine
Avoid making decisions without giving the applicant a chance to respond.
Avoid assuming that any companies seeking information about an individual are legally compliant.
Avoid requesting information about the character or personal and the private life of an individual while verifying the historical employment facts.

Necessities for conducting Employee Background Checks

You need to have a candidate’s full name, date of birth, and Social Security Number for doing a background check.
If you want to check credit reports, military records, and school transcripts, you need the candidate’s permission.
If you hire an outside company to do the background check, you need to take the candidate’s permission.
If the candidate denies the permission, you will be entitled to take the candidate out of consideration for that job profile.

What are the disadvantages of an Employee Background Check?

One of the major disadvantages is that you might see this as a wastage of time and money. An organisation invests large sums of money in conducting such investigations, and most of the time, the person turns out to be a genuine one and with the time it takes to conduct these checks, the candidate may think that the organisation is not interested and hence, they may join some other organisation in this period.

Judging a candidate on his/her background deeds may not always prove to be fruitful either. It may happen that a candidate got trapped in a criminal offence and in an actual sense, they are a gem of a person. But when you do not know the candidate personally, you will focus on the verification reports and let a genuine person go.

If there is still any uncertainty in your mind about conducting employee background checks, why not reach out to us? CRI Group has experts across the globe from all backgrounds who are trained to provide you with specialised, expert advice fit for your business needs. Get in touch today!

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Who is CRI Group™?

Based in London, CRI Group™ works with companies across the Americas, Europe, Africa, Middle East and Asia-Pacific as a one-stop international Risk Management, Employee Background Screening, Business Intelligence, Due Diligence, TPRM, Compliance Solutions, and other professional Investigative Research solutions provider. We have the largest proprietary network of background-screening analysts and investigators across the Middle East and Asia. Our global presence ensures that no matter how international your operations are we have the network needed to provide you with all you need, wherever you happen to be. CRI Group™ also holds BS 102000:2013 and BS 7858:2012 Certifications, is an HRO certified provider and partner with Oracle.

In 2016, CRI Group™ launched the Anti-Bribery Anti-Corruption (ABAC™) Center of Excellence – an independent certification body established for ISO 37001:2016 Anti-Bribery Management Systems, ISO 37301 Compliance Management Systems and ISO 31000:2018 Risk Management, providing training and certification. ABAC™ operates through its global network of certified ethics and compliance professionals, qualified auditors and other certified professionals. As a result, CRI Group’s global team of certified fraud examiners work as a discreet white-labelled supplier to some of the world’s largest organisations.

Contact ABAC™ for more on ISO Certification and training.

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Employee Fraud: Why are Human Factors so Important in Risk Management?

When any fraud, including employee fraud, is discovered, it’s usually by surprise. That’s because most of us aren’t used to looking for criminal behaviour inside our organisation. We trust our employees and co-workers, and we keep our focus on succeeding as a team and accomplishing our goals for the business. Nobody wants to think that someone might be subverting the rules for their gain.

Unfortunately, though, fraud does happen. The statistics tell us that, on average, organisations lose about 5 per cent of their total revenues to fraud, and the median loss in frauds committed by owners/executives is $600,000. If that’s not bad enough, the average fraud lasts 18 months before being discovered – if it is discovered at all (ACFE, 2020).

Employee fraud is a combination of complex events, and many organisations include “human factors” in generic terms in the causation path of failure. Because for many organisations, it is hard to specifically identify human factors and understand how to manage them. At CRI Group™, we have 32 years of experience in the causes of potential deviations, the unwanted scenario that organisations may face, and the controls necessary to prevent or mitigate incidents. Our analysts uncover the truth every day; here are the most common human factors that lead to employee fraud:

Pressures to Perform
Staff Reductions
Departmental Cuts
Business Survival
Overworked Audit Staff
Increased External Vulnerability Due to Weak IT Controls
Reduced Regulatory Oversight

Human factors in risk management

Understanding the impact of human behaviour on your primary process is key. When we address human factors related to health and safety, we aim to optimise human performance and reduce human failures. Organisations need to take a proportionate approach to human factors in risk assessment based on their hazard and risk profile. Several large companies have recognised the value of adopting some kind of a risk model.

Applying human factors tools and techniques in your risk assessment is detrimental to the safety of your workforce too. This human factor risk management process should consider work ethic, culture, and stakeholder expectations as organisational culture is affected by these concepts and links management processes to corporate sustainability.

Benefits of implementing human factors in risk management

Reduce turnover and training costs
Gain a competitive edge through the hiring of better people
Increase productivity – help your employees be more productive knowing that everyone employed by your company has been screened
Set your company apart and win more business
Reduce employee-related problems
Protect company reputation/brand & customer relations
Comply with mandates created by state or federal law for certain industries
Increase retention
Reduce negligent hiring claims
Avoid violence in the workplace (threats of violence and actual violence)
Reduce theft and espionage
Avoid lawsuits and the costs associated with the defence
Avoid loss of goodwill

Mitigate employee risk

Organisations spend years and thousands, even millions, to brand their products and services – it only takes one bad hire to cause a loss of capital and reputation. Employee Background Checks can aid in reducing the risk of hiring an employee who does not live up to their supposed skill set and could cause irrevocable damage. It can cause a business to fail, especially if the employee holds malice toward the organisation. EmploySmart™ is CRI Group’s own solution aiming to expose vulnerabilities and threats within your organisation. Our EmploySmart™ is a risk management measure that can significantly reduce business and financial crime, fraud and malpractice within your workplace.

Our EmploySmart™ solutions are also certified by the British Standard Institute BSI for the scope of BS 7858:2019 Screening of individuals working in a secure environment, Code of practice (the only BS 7858 certified background screening services provider in the UAE and across the Middle East); and BS 102000:2018 Code of practice for the provision of investigative services.

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50th UAE National Day 2021

50th UAE National Day 2021. Today is the UAE’s National Day, which coincides with the country’s Golden Jubilee, marking 50 years since the founding of the Emirates, and we couldn’t be more excited to celebrate. This UAE National Day reflects the dreams, development and dynamism of the last 50 years for those who call this nation home. The UAE wasn’t always a prosperous, cosmopolitan country; the country had humble beginnings. The UAE’s rich history is rooted in trade. The Emirates’ location between Europe and the Far East attracted merchants from India and China and was prized by Europeans, particularly the Portuguese, Dutch and British.

Those working from Sunday to Thursday get four days off to celebrate National Day and Commemoration Day from Wednesday, December 1 to Saturday, December 4, giving both private and public sectors a much-needed four-day weekend. Read more about the public holiday here. Join us as we celebrate the remarkable journey of the UAE and now it’s time to experience the festivities together as we honour the Year of the 50th. across Dubai.

Who are Corporate Research and Investigations Limited (CRI Group™)?

Ever since 1990, Corporate Research and Investigations Limited (CRI Group™) has committed itself to safeguard organisations from fraud, bribery and corruption. Based in London, United Kingdom, CRI™ is an international organisation with specialists and resources situated in key, provincial marketplaces throughout the Asia Pacific, South Asia, the Middle East, North Africa, Europe, North and South America and aim to shield organisations from detriment by determining the lawful compliance, financial feasibility, and integrity measures of external partners, suppliers and consumers pursuing to associate themselves with your brand. They are acknowledged as a prominent Compliance and Risk Management organisation accredited and interconnected in the objectives of the Dubai International Financial Center (DIFC) and Qatar Financial Center (QFC).

With a profession spanning over 30-years in the disciplines of fraud prevention, defensive integrity, security and compliance, CRI® Group’s CEO Mr Zafar Anjum is a highly revered authority in his line of work. As a dependable influence in the field of fraud deterrence and protections together with commercial clients, management organisations and trade units, Mr Anjum is renowned for producing secure and reliable networks throughout the dynamic, challenging worldwide markets. In conjunction with a remarkable educational experience coupled with his trade proficiency, Mr Zafar Anjum is continually the first accredited global investigator on the scene when multi-national EMEA corporations pursue to eliminate compliance or security breaches.

2016 found the organisation instituting the Anti-Bribery Anti-Corruption (ABAC™) Center of Excellence – an autonomous certification body that aims to assist organisations in abating core risks as well as peripheral ones through the delivery of a comprehensive group of Anti-Bribery, Compliance and Risk Management programs.

Why CRI™?

CRI Group’s extensive efforts and reliable record in this field of work heavily align with what The UAE Innovation awards stand for – the aim to assist organisations across various sectors in strengthening their vetting capabilities in a manner that demonstrates sustainability in and of the public interest at large while maintaining legalities and development within the internal corporate structure is one to advance innovation in the industry for certain. In a sector that is accelerating the congealment of innovative proficiencies across a countless sum of industries comprising of automotive, aviation, oil, gas & energy, IT & telecommunications, property and many more industries, the services that CRI Group™ have to offer paired with a constructive influence on the society adjacent to it, a significant increase in the development of innovative systems is certainly to be anticipated.

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GDPR vs. UK-GDPR; the Laws Post Brexit

The General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR) is a regulation in EU law that was implemented on the 25^{th of} May 2018 and concentrates on data protection and confidentiality in the European Union and the European Economic Area; alongside this, the GDPR is also used to address the transmission of personal data outside the EU and EEA areas. The EU Commission announced on 28 June 2021 that adequacy judgments for the UK have been passed, so what does that mean for the GDPR rules?

The Brexit transition phase concluded on the 31^{st of} December 2020 and as a component of the new trade agreement, the EU has come to an agreement to postpone the transmission limitations for at least four months, which can then be stretched out to six months (recognised as the bridge). The European Commission published its draft decisions on the 19^th of February 2021 regarding the UK’s adequacy under the EU’s General Data Protection Regulation (EU GDPR) and Law Enforcement Directive (LED). In both cases, the European Commission has found the UK to be adequate which implies that much of the data can resume the stream from the EU and the EEA devoid of the need for supplementary precautions. Nevertheless, it is vital to take note of the fundamental reality that the adequacy decisions do not cover data conveyed to the UK for the principles of immigration control, or where the UK immigration immunity is appropriate. For this nature of data, distinct regulations are employed, and the EEA dispatcher wants to set other transfer safeguards in place. September 2021 saw WhatsApp being handed the second highest fine under EU GDPR (General Data Protection Regulation) rules and the biggest fine ever from the Irish Data Protection Commission due to their lack of understanding towards the new GDPR laws – had they done their due diligence, they may have been able to avert such a hefty fine. Our Due diligence 360° services provide the specialised intelligence needed by global financial institutions and multinational corporations to guarantee complete compliance with anti-money laundering (AML) regulations and legislations.

Find out more about compliance below or download our free brochure.

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The draft decisions will at this point be deemed by the European Data Protection Board (EDPB) and a committee of the 27 EU Member Governments. If the committee accepts the draft decisions, then the European Commission can formally adopt them as legal adequacy decisions. If adequacy decisions are not implemented at the end of the bridge and allocations from the European Economic Area (EEA) to the UK will require compliance with EU GDPR transfer constraints.

What is the UK-GDPR?

The United Kingdom General Data Protection Regulation (UK-GDPR) is the UK’s national data privacy law that is the proxy for the EU’s GDPR after Brexit; it is fundamentally the equivalent to the EU’s GDPR but altered to accommodate national regions of regulation. The UK-GDPR will regulate personal data and demand the same legal grounds for managing personal data.

The GDPR is indeed still retained in domestic law as the UK GDPR, although the UK has the freedom to maintain the framework under evaluation. The ‘UK GDPR’ as it’s known as, rests adjacent to a revised edition of the DPA 2018. It is also essential to note that the fundamental ethics, constitutional rights, and responsibilities remain as they were but that there are connotations for the regulations on transmissions of individual data between the UK and the EEA.

The UK GDPR also pertains to regulators and processors established out of the UK if their managing pursuits correlate to:

presenting commodities or services to persons in the UK; or
supervising the conduct of persons taking place in the UK.

Similarly, there are also outcomes for UK regulators who have an institution in the EEA, have consumers in the EEA, or observe individuals in the EEA. The EU GDPR still pertains to this handling as data can still flow freely from the EEA because the EU have adopted adequacy decisions about the UK, but the European data protection mandates has altered the way you can interact. CRI® Group’s own exclusive, expert-developed 3PRM™ services help you proactively mitigate risks from third-party affiliations, protecting your organisation from liability, brand damage, and harm to the business. Whether your organisation has a large, well-established third-party program, is in the early stages of development, or is anywhere in between, the 3PRM™ solution can improve the health of your program and future-proof your entire business in many forms.

Find out more about 3PRM™ below or download our free brochure.

FIND OUT OUR Third-Party Management Solution or DOWNLOAD THE BROCHURE

Which rules apply?

Whilst the adequacy judgments stay in order, the UK GDPR is still valid and is expected to remain so until the 27^{th of} June 2025. The EU Commission will be supervising advancements in the UK on a constant basis to guarantee that the UK will continue to deliver a comparable degree of data protection. The Commission is still able to revise, postpone, or rescind the decisions if concerns cannot be settled. EU data subjects or an EU data protection authority can also instigate a lawful dispute regarding the decisions in which the Court of Justice of the European union would then have to determine whether the UK did essentially deliver comparable security.

In the absenteeism of an EU GDPR adequacy decision, the Frozen GDPR would be valid to subjective data of the basis of if:

it was administered in the UK under the EU GDPR before 01 January 2021; or
it’s being administered in the UK on the basis of the Withdrawal Agreement

Conversely, the UK-GDPR does increase on -and diverge from- the EU GDPR in noteworthy approaches that will make modifications to the legal environment of data protection in the UK.

UK-GDPR expands and changes the European GDPR

The areas increased on by the UK-GDPR are:

National security
Intelligence services
Immigration

These regions, are per definition, are outside the scope of the European GDPR the three of them are deemed to be extra-national regulation from the EU devoid of powers to govern affairs of national confidence in constituent nations. Nevertheless, the UK-GDPR sets out specific concessions by which the customary welfare of personal data can be circumvented, e.g., when in matters of national security or in matters of immigration. It also applies the same requirements for collection and processing of personal data to the intelligence services. A further significant change is that the Information Commissioner, who was the leading data protection authority in the UK today, became the primary director, monitor and enforcer of the UK-GDPR.

Are you post-Brexit GDPR compliant?

The UK-GDR would now entail your organisation’s site or application to request for the user’s approval prior to accumulating and managing data via cookies. It involves that your organisation not amassing more data than is truly mandatory and to also make it as straightforward for your users to rescind authority to the application of data as it is to give it. Transparency is key in the UK-GDPR and requires clarification of how long data is stored and how you will be processing users’ personal data.

Let’s Talk!

It’s always great to have a helping hand when it comes to compliance and risk management – especially with all the new changes expected to take place ahead of securing the integrity and morality across corporate culture. Take a proactive stance with the highest level of expertise as a part of your essential corporate strategy. Contact us today to learn more about our full range of services to help your organisation stay protected.

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Neglecting Background Screening

Are you neglecting background screening? What consequences may affect your organisation when you ignore this process when hiring? What is it about Background Screening? Statistics have revealed to us that a substantial quantity of resumes that are presented to HR during the recruitment process comprised fabricated material; shortlisting is a rigorous assortment procedure intended to put your applicant on trial, but if you are interviewing an individual who has fabricated much of their resume, how can you make a good judge of character? Put, executing a pre-employment check is the best way to combat this issue.

Background screening is vital to organisations of all types and industries as it can assist in authenticating your employees’ record of accomplishment and help avoid a bad hire. Before COVID-19, it was found that an estimate of 85% of organisations testified to conducting background screening of some type. On the same note, a vast 92 per cent stated that they trust their employees with confidential data but without the assistance of a background screening measure. Find out other ways COVID has impacted the hiring process, or download our background screening brochure.

Below, CRI Group™ has compiled a list of 5 risks you are running into when failing to conduct a background screening check before employment.

1. Your prospective member of staff could be a felon

Hiring a candidate with a criminal record could taint your company’s reputation, generate a highly volatile atmosphere in your office, and harm other staff members. An employer has the right to investigate an applicants’ criminal past; however, the only way to genuinely acquire the data surrounding an applicant’s criminal past when they intend on masking the evidence is through a criminal background check.

A professional background verification service is a must to communicate with the local authorities to acquire legitimate illegal data and make a well-informed decision for the benefit of your organisation.

2. The odds of employing an unqualified candidate devoid of background screening is 1 out of 6

1 out of every 6 candidates carry inflated or falsified documents to persuade you into offering them the position – and this can be accredited to the rise of credential mills and fake corporations; applicants commonly use counterfeit degrees and false employment records to get hired, and it takes more than just a phone call to find out the reality.

Background service providers use various procedures to obtain legitimate data, including private trips to the university/corporations where applicants allege to have graduated from or worked. Applicants with falsified resumes are not simply deficient in both integrity and honesty – in most cases, they are also not competent enough to fit your job description. A straightforward background verification uncovers this deception and prevents you from hiring an unqualified candidate.

3. Endangering the welfare of other members of the task force

In correspondence to the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Administration (SAMHSA),9 % of approximately 22.4 million unlawful drug users are employed either full time or part-time. A substance abuser, aside from grappling with efficiency, will also inhibit the performance of their co-worker with their improper demeanour.

Employees with a record of drug abuse and misconduct are also deemed to be exceedingly inconsistent and present themselves as a danger to their co-workers; workplace violence and delinquency can be attributed to disregarding employee drug tests and criminal checks – checks that avert such calamities making your office peaceful and an improved place to work.

4. Increased abrasion can also be attributed to improper background screening

Pre-employment screening underlines the notion of quality over quantity. It makes sure that you hire the right candidate from a mass of applicants who applied for the position as employees with unsatisfactory credentials habitually find their way into your organisation through fabricated evidence. Hiring model candidates with an admirable mindset and relevant qualifications can mitigate employee turnover and enhance the general outcome of your organisation. However, the good news is that they never last for long, owing to their shortage of output and failure to handle the work delegated to them.

5. A candidate’s social media presence and global database can help nail down an accurate judge of character

Social media platforms in conjunction with international databases, for instance, criminal watch lists, credit archives, and public litigation archives, can expose your candidates’ positive and negative characteristics that may escape you during the interview and selection process. Abandoning these checks will hinder you as an employer from seeing your candidate’s best or worst side when picking among leading applicants who contend for a critical position. Employers who operate social media checks on their candidates have found it simpler to identify their candidates better, as social media is where the candidates are more apt to demonstrate their temperament and talents. The process for operating social media and archive checks can be burdensome, but rest assured that pre-employment screening providers are devoted to passing thorough checks on social media platforms and hundreds of databases to assist employers worldwide make critical hiring judgments.

The Verdict?

Background screening has achieved immense recognition throughout the world over the previous few years as it should do – its impact and the modern setting assist in diminishing the pressures that jeopardise every employer’s aim to enhance their personnel and work environment. Verification should be a compulsory component of an organisation’s onboarding procedure to alleviate all the risks we have discussed thus far. Notwithstanding the apparent advantages that background screening presents, it likewise confirms that your organisation hires the most excellent contenders who would promise continual triumph.

CRI™ is certified by British Standard Institute BSI for the scope of BS 7858:2019 screening of individuals working in a secure environment, Code of practice and BS 102000:2018 Code of practice for the provision of investigative services. The BSI is the only BS 7858 accredited background screening services provider in the UAE and the Middle East. Find out more about the BS 7858:2019 or download our BS7858:2019 free playbook.

The more you invest in sourcing morally correct corporate conduct, the more you can expect to be rewarded with a catalytic action to grow and expand your organisation.

Let’s Talk!

Don’t leave hiring to chance. Take a proactive stance with the highest level of background screening as a part of your essential corporate strategy. Contact us today to learn more about our full range of services to help your organisation stay protected.

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Employee Background Check Concepts

Employee Background check concepts are inescapable for your organisation if you are looking to minimise risks surrounding a bad hire. The concept of an employee background check has become one of the most significant phases in the recruitment process.

The escalating figure of crime scenes and fraudulence incidents is a key justification why organisations take up this step as aside from the rising crime rates, organisations are also becoming hyperaware of their employee turnover rate, employee burnout, employee retention, etc. Employee Background Checks are a highly effective method of ensuring that organisations are recruiting the finest. What are the key concepts of conducting an employee background check and why is it substantial for corporations of all sizes and statures?

Concepts of Employee Background Check

In wake of the digital development, it is fair to say that the recruitment process has become quite demanding, and an employee needs to cross numerous phases to at the right time reach the finishing point. The Employee Background Check is quite a time-consuming concept as employers strive to have the greatest pick from the numerous candidates who have come up for the recruitment process. After the interview sessions are over, it needs some time to let the employee know about their joining since this is the time when most organisations go through the employee background check procedure. Some companies opt to perform this procedure in-house while some others hire external service providers to conduct a comprehensive check of the employee’s academic, professional, and even social presence. After the employer is gratified with the check, the employee is offered an appointment letter to join them.

CRI Group’s EmploySmart™ can be tailored into specific screening packages to meet the requirements of each specific position within your organisation. Ensure a safe work environment for all. Download our EmploySmart brochure or get a free quote.

Significance of The Employee Background Check and its Advantages

Organisations carry out such checks due to a myriad of reasons, some of these include:

1. Knowing the validity of the resume

Many candidates tend to embellish their experiences on their resumes and make use of such methods to obtain their desired job through such falsified recognitions. If a candidate does obtain their role through this method, they will not be able to handle the position well making this a complicated situation for the employee and the employer concurrently. Therefore, it is incredibly valuable to know what the candidate has falsified on their resume. An appropriate and comprehensive verification of the employee’s background can unveil all such truths in front of the employer. After knowing the true details, employers can make a judgment that will be more beneficial for the organisation as well as the employee.

2. Knowing about the nature of the candidate

Like the falsified details on the resume, candidates also tend to wear somewhat of the false mask of confidence on their faces while attending the interview. It is tricky to distinguish and judge a person in a conversation of a few minutes. If it is a career profile where the pressure is going to be intense, it is crucial to know whether the candidate can handle such pressure or not. Knowing the authentic behaviour and personality aids in evading bad hires. The experts of the verification check get you an appropriate note about the personality, nature, and behaviour of the candidate to determine whether they can match up to the demands of the needed position.

3. Knowing experiences at the past offices

Candidates produce diplomatic answers about their past experiences when a question is thrown at them about said experiences. Many of the experts suggest cracking this during the interview session as the employers must verify the factual scenario at the previous offices. It may turn out that the candidate had a terrible record at the last office, or it may also happen that the employer had fired the candidate from the last job. There can be a few things that can happen. You can of course offer the candidate a chance to clarify, but it is imperative to get the verification done before this.

4. Knowing criminal experience and legal support

Having an employee background check is also about having an awareness of any criminal experience a candidate could have potentially had. It can be unsafe for the organisation to hire an employee with such a background and place them amid unharmful employees. It is just as vital to know whether the candidate has legal support or not. If yes, it should be checked whether the candidate has misused the support in the past or not. If the candidate has misused the support in the form of a lawsuit or so in the past, they do the same for your organisation too.

What to include in Employee Background Check?

History of employment: Verify the reference given by the candidate as it confirms their behavioural and working patterns with previous employers. This way, their overall performance, commitment, and proclivities can be assessed.
Criminal background: It is essential to determine that the candidate does not have a criminal history. It is inevitable, principally for the profiles related to defence or trust.
Credit history: Knowing the credit rating of your candidate is also important as this reveals the integrity of the employees. This can be done by completing an employee background check for the credit history.
Terror Watch List: For the businesses running in countries like the USA, checking the Terror Watch List of their candidates is especially critical. Again, it is a necessity for security positions.
Checking Social Security: Organisations should check the legitimacy of Social Security Number. Proper background checks of distinct names, aliases, date of birth, history of addresses, etc. This way, it can be found out if the candidate has been living with other names or anything else questionable which is not accessible in criminal records.
Checking public/court records: This is done to check if the candidate has been or is implicated in any sort of court proceedings or not. This is incredibly significant in picking the right candidate that can offer comprehensive devotion to the job profile you are proposing to extend.
Reference checks: There are two types of reference Employee Background Checks: personal and employment. Both facilitate in confirming the integrity, reliability, steadiness, and personality of the employee.
Checking Sex Offender Registry: Sex Offender Registry check must be an integral part of the employee background check as you must not endanger other employees or consumers, especially in roles surrounding children and other susceptible individuals, by hiring a sexual predator.
Education check: This sort of background check is carried out to determine the authenticity of the various credentials provided by the candidate you are planning to recruit.
Driving Records: If your candidate is required to drive a company-owned vehicle, then checking driving records and license is essential for you.
Record of Military Service: You need to pay attention to some key measures while hiring a candidate with a military service record. That is why checking the military service records of your candidates is also important.
Compensation Record: Checking the candidate’s compensation claims from past employers is also significant before hiring an employee.

Measures to take for Employee Background Checks

Having a proper flow chart of different steps

Organisations must have a consistent policy for the employee background check, and for this, responsible authorities should know about the different steps they need to follow for background verification. A flow chart of all the steps is often used for this measure as they are easily comprehensible across the board.

Legal Assistance to understand the role of Local Laws in Employee Background Check

An assortment of confidential data is involved in the background check which is why taking legal Assistance will help avoid many sorts of legal complications.

Opt for FCRA Compliant Employee Background Check

As FCRA (Fair Credit Reporting Act) determine what you can and cannot do in your employee background check proceedings and govern all the background checks, organisations must ensure that they follow FCRA’s rules and regulation.

In case of any mistake or misunderstanding, allow a candidate to Clear Up that.

There are instances in which the data an employer has received can be incorrect; it is important to offer the chance to a candidate to rectify those misunderstandings as it determines a prudent and productive practice.

Being aware of the difference b/w Investigative Consumer Reports and Reference Checks

If you reject a candidate because of the Investigative Consumer Report, the candidate needs to be provided with a copy of that report. However, if the information was obtained via reference check, such as asking past employers, you need not give such details to the candidate.

Academic references Checking

Academic circles and experience are easily exaggerated and manipulated areas in recruitment and can be problematic and at times difficult to identify. Therefore, the prospective employer ought to start their reference check from this point. Undeniably, there is no need whatsoever to employ an applicant who is not honest regarding their academic qualification as they would not be productive and are likely to have ill motives. Consequently, they could be a liability to your organisation. This kind of candidate cannot be trusted at all, and therefore there is no need why the employer should. However, it would be to think such an individual for their interest in your organisation, but never should one hire them.

Call current and former supervisors.

At times, it can prove difficult to extract any information about an applicant due to some legal handles and the fear of being sued for character defamation or even libel where the information which would be given might be negative, especially from either the current or former employers of your prospective candidate. However, it is worthwhile to find out as the data available at your disposal allows for sound and appropriate decisions to be made for the benefit of both the organisation and other members of staff.

Checking one’s network of associates

Undeniably, for those who have been in the personnel management department, it is most likely that they have a vibrant network of associates, friend colleagues and family members who would be willing to share information about a prospective employee. It is therefore essential and significant to gather information from them. It would not be surprising that one might even get more information from such people.

Browse online sites

With the use of the internet and using several search engines or numerous social sites, one is likely to find crucial and critical information that would go a long way in facilitating the employer get sufficient data about either the applicant or the organisation that they have worked or claim to have worked for.
This information might range from positive to negative, thereby allowing the employer to make the right decision. Undoubtedly, the internet is a sure and free source of data that any prospective employer should employ in doing a background check.

In conducting employee background checks, there are some golden rules that one needs to observe to avoid any legal and challenges in executing the duties of their human resources and making the background check most effective and efficient. These do and don’ts include but are not limited to:

Do’s

Having a consistent background checks policy and detailing how the policy should be used.
Getting legal advice on how to conduct background checks under the local legal framework.
Giving the applicants a chance to clear up any faults or misconstructions appearing on their documentations and during the interview process is inconsistent with your background check.
Employing the services of background check services compliant with the legal frameworks of your region
Understanding the difference between background checks vis-à-vis investigative consumer reports.

Don’ts

Avoid making decisions on using the background checks on an applicant-by-applicant basis.
Avoid the assumption that some parts of the background check process routine
Avoid making decisions without letting the applicant a chance to respond.
Avoid assuming that any companies seeking information about an individual are legally compliant.
Avoid requesting information about the character or personal and private of an individual while verifying the historical employment facts.

Fundamentally, employee background checks are not too viewed superficially as they play an important role in ensuring that neither the employer nor the organisation encounter loss or legal handles in exercising their mandate and role. Consequently, by attracting competency and matching the skills with the tasks, employers ensure that their organisations remain profitable and are sustainably produced and competitive in their respective fields.

Finally, the most critical information that these background checks elicit are vital and are diversified in range and scope depending on the tasks to be performed and are as follows:

Criminal Records

Indeed, background checks are instrumental in providing information about the individual, which would inevitably be vital, especially where the candidate is required to handle or maintain important levels of trust, confidentiality, and security. Consequently, this kind and level of reliability would not be forthcoming from a criminal record person.

Social Security Validation

Apart from and the individual being tax compliant, background checks guarantee the legitimacy of the applicant’s social security number. The Social Security Validation facilitates in and discovering of all the names, as well as aliases and any variations thereof, dates of birth in addition to the history addresses associated with the applicant.

This limits the incidents of the employer contracting an individual who has a criminal record or does not have any legal status of seeking and getting employed in that country or region. Further still, it provided information on whether the candidate has ever lived in unrevealed places or under other pseudonyms that could divulge unlawful records that wouldn’t have otherwise been established.

Address History

Address History background checks help in tracing prior addresses where the applicant could have resided and facilitated the establishment of where else the applicant could have lived, making it easier in the verification of their true identity and may form the basis of further interview questions as well as getting to know the candidate better.

Terror Watch List

With the prevalent threat of terrorism and the global danger posed by terrorists, a thorough background check is more likely to establish if your potential employee could have been involved in terror acts or whether they are in any country or even states terror watch list. Although this was explicitly imperative for security jobs, it has been deemed necessary in almost every profession due to the changing dynamics and tactics employed by terrorists and other criminal syndicates in the twenty-first century.

Sex Offender and human trafficking Registry Check

With the ever-increasing levels of human trafficking, child pornography, organ harvesting, paedophilia and sexually related abuse globally, it is paramount that for positions dealing with minors, the marginalised and the most vulnerable through background checks are a necessity rather than just an option to ascertain the credibility of the applicant to avert and reduce the prevalence of the vices above.

Necessities for conducting Employee Background Checks

You need to have your full name, date of birth, and Social Security Number for doing a background check.
If you want to check credit reports, military records, and school transcripts, you need the candidate’s permission.
If you hire an outside company to do the background check, you need to take the candidate’s permission.
If the candidate denies the permission, you will be entitled to take the candidate out of consideration for that job profile.

Are There Any Disadvantages?

One of the major disadvantages that you can see is the wastage of time and money. The organisation invests large sums of money in conducting such investigations, and most of the time, the person turns out to be a genuine one and with the time it takes to conduct these checks, the candidate may think that the organisation is not interested and hence, they may join some other organisation in this period.

Judging a candidate on their background deeds may not always prove to be fruitful either. It may happen that a candidate got trapped in a criminal, offence and in an actual sense, they are a gem of a person. But when you do not know the candidate personally, you will focus on the verification reports and let a genuine person go.

Opting for an employee background check depends on the type of your business and the kind of job profile you are going to hire that candidate. Getting an employee background check has become eminent today because there have been so many instances each day. They are getting the verification done to get the employer the satisfaction that they are selecting a genuine person and will not hamper the reputation and environment of the company.

GET IN TOUCH

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Risks of Cybercrime and Social Media: NEW PLAYBOOK

The risks of cybercrime claims many victims over many sectors. The PwC Global Economic Crime Survey 2020 found that a company falls victim to six frauds on average. The most common types are customer fraud, asset misappropriation as well as cybercrime. It also proved a roughly even split between frauds committed by internal and external perpetrators, at almost 40% each – with the rest being mostly collusion between the two. Few can deny the enormous technological advancements that are constantly taking place in the modern world. The internet, the computer, and other technological advancements have dramatically changed what it means to socialise, ‘chat’, and even read a book. Both the disadvantages and advantages of such developments are clear, and as technology gains pace, so have the unlawful activities of those who seek to take advantages of such developments.

According to a 2020 cybercrime report from Europol, COVID-19 sparked upward trend in cybercrime. In fact, since the beginning of the pandemic, the FBI has seen a fourfold increase in cybersecurity complaints, whereas the global losses from cybercrime exceeded $1 trillion in 2020.

In other words, as technology evolves, the risks of cybercrime have become complex. The sense that one is safe from crime in the privacy of one’s own home has been lost. In fact, according to World Economic Forum’s “Global Risks Report 2020” the chances of catching and prosecuting a cybercriminal are almost nil (0.05%).

Take the First Steps Towards Developing Measures Against the Risks of Cybercrime!

This playbook critically examines the growth of cybercrime, evaluating the risks it poses in terms of the different forms of cybercrime that exist and the regulations that seek to detect, prevent and punish them.

The extension of an old legislation to include cybercrime is not entirely effective – especially not for crimes committed within the realm of social media and social networking. Therefore the need to develop an ‘anti-cybercrime culture emerges. It has to be implemented on an international scale that safeguards these crimes – the promotion of careful use would therefore be facilitated to hinder such crimes before they can materialise. Our playbook includes:

What is cybercrime and why is it important?
Top corporate cybersecurity risks and 10 types of high-tech crimes
How cybercrime impacts business and your company’s growth
Cybercrime and regulations in place
And how your response as a business matters – how to can you protect your business from cybercrime including advice and tips on how to telework safely

Download the full playbook today and learn step-by-step things your company can do to be better protected from cybercrime. Robust cyber-security, data protection, anti-fraud and risk management all come together to mitigate the dangers posed by hackers, phishers and other cybercriminals.

DOWNLOAD PLAYBOOK

With the playbook in your hands, you’ll learn about the most common cyber attacks. This includes viruses, phishing attacks and website hacks. You’ll also gain a better understanding of the consequences of different types of cybercrime.

To sum it up, the playbook provides best-practices and ways that companies are lessening their risk without spending prohibitive resources to do so. Above all, the right expert advice means that any company can be on the right track to protecting their customers, their assets, and their employees from the risks of cybercrime.

Who is CRI Group™ ?

Based in London, CRI Group works with companies across the Americas, Europe, Africa, Middle East and Asia-Pacific as a one-stop international Risk Management, Employee Background Screening, Business Intelligence, Due Diligence, Compliance Solutions and other professional Investigative Research solutions provider. We have the largest proprietary network of background screening analysts and investigators across the Middle East and Asia. Our global presence ensures that no matter how international your operations are, we have the network needed to provide you with all you need, wherever you happen to be. CRI Group also holds B.S. 102000:2013 and B.S. 7858:2012 Certifications, is an HRO certified provider and partner with Oracle.

In 2016, CRI Group launched the Anti-Bribery Anti-Corruption (ABAC®) Center of Excellence – an independent certification body established for ISO 37001:2016 Anti-Bribery Management Systems, ISO 37301 Compliance Management Systems and ISO 31000:2018 Risk Management, providing training and certification. ABAC™ operates through its global network of certified ethics and compliance professionals, qualified auditors and other certified professionals. As a result, CRI Group’s global team of certified fraud examiners work as a discreet white-labelled supplier to some of the world’s largest organisations. Contact ABAC™ for more on ISO Certification and training.

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Have you done your Corporate Compliance Programs Gap Analysis (HEBA) yet?

Prove that your business is ethical. Complete our FREE Highest Ethical Business Assessment (HEBA) and evaluate your current Corporate Compliance Program. Find out if your organisation’s compliance program is in line with worldwide Compliance, Business Ethics, Anti-Bribery and Anti-Corruption Frameworks. Let our experts prepare a complimentary gap analysis (worth USD 1,172 | GBP 950 | ₨ 220,312 | EUR 1,122) of your compliance program to evaluate if it meets “adequate procedures” requirements under UK Bribery Act, DOJ’s Evaluation of Corporate Compliance Programs Guidance and Malaysian Anti-Corruption Commission.

What’s a Gap Analysis, and why do I need it?

In management literature, Gap analysis involves the comparison of actual performance with potential or desired performance. If your organisation does not make the best use of current resources or forgoes investment in capital or technology, it is likely to perform below the desired goal. Our Gap analysis involves determining, if your current set of internal policies and procedures do comply with laws, rules, and regulations to uphold your business reputation and how can you improve current capabilities difference to meet current industry and regulatory requirements.

Our HEBA survey is designed to evaluate your compliance with adequate procedures to prevent bribery and corruption across the organisation. Acting as a benchmarking, the gap analysis will allow you to understand what is the general expectation of performance within your industry and compare that expectation with your organisation’s current level of performance. At this level, the gap analysis will allow you to highlight any gap and focus on ways to address it and improve your Corporate Compliance Program.

Highest Ethical Business Assessment: Evaluating Adequate Compliance, Business Ethics, Anti-Bribery and Anti-Corruption Framework

This survey is monitored and evaluated by qualified ABAC® professionals with Business Ethics, Legal and Compliance background. The questions are open-ended to encourage a qualitative analysis of your Compliance Program and to facilitate the gap analysis process. If you aren’t performing gap analyses within your company, you may have a more significant gap than you think.

TAKE THE GAP ANALYSIS

The survey takes around 10 minutes to complete

Are you addressing corporate compliance?

Implementing written policies, procedures, and standards of conduct;
Designating a compliance officer and compliance committee;
Conducting effective training and education;
Developing effective lines of communication;
Conducting internal monitoring and auditing;
Enforcing standards through well-publicized disciplinary guidelines;
Responding promptly to detected offences and undertaking corrective action; and
Annual reviews.

Each of these elements requires a robust, organisation-wide enforcement and documentation. Corporate compliance programs are most successful when they’re integrated into the management of your practice–creating a culture of compliance within your practice is your best bet to avoid any regulatory breaches and fines!

Why is it important?

Corporate compliance should be an essential part of your business operations, regardless industry or size. How does your business manage compliance and mitigate risk? Taking preventative measures can feel like a hassle upfront, but it can save your organisation untold costs in the long run. Corporate compliance violations can result in fines, penalties, lawsuits, loss of reputation, and more. Keep your business from learning the lesson the hard way. If you’re ready to take control of compliance and protect your business from risk, learn more about CRI® Group today and discover how we can help your corporate compliance program.

Start developing a compliance program today!

About us

Based in London, CRI® Group works with companies across the Americas, Europe, Africa, Middle East and Asia-Pacific as a one-stop international Risk Management, Employee Background Screening, Business Intelligence, Due Diligence, Compliance Solutions and other professional Investigative Research solutions provider. We have the largest proprietary network of background-screening analysts and investigators across the Middle East and Asia. Our global presence ensures that no matter how international your operations are we have the network needed to provide you with all you need, wherever you happen to be. CRI® Group also holds BS 102000:2013 and BS 7858:2012 Certifications, is an HRO certified provider and partner with Oracle.

In 2016, CRI® Group launched Anti-Bribery Anti-Corruption (ABAC®) Center of Excellence – an independent certification body established for ISO 37001:2016 Anti-Bribery Management Systems, ISO 37301 Compliance Management Systems and ISO 31000:2018 Risk Management, providing training and certification. ABAC® operates through its global network of certified ethics and compliance professionals, qualified auditors and other certified professionals. As a result, CRI® Group’s global team of certified fraud examiners work as a discreet white-labelled supplier to some of the world’s largest organisations. Contact ABAC® for more on ISO Certification and training.

Speak up – report any illegal, unethical, or improper behaviour!

If you find yourself in an ethical dilemma or suspect inappropriate or illegal conduct, and you feel uncomfortable reporting through normal channels of communication, or wish to raise the issue anonymously, use CRI® Group’s Compliance Hotline. The Compliance Hotline is a secure and confidential reporting channel managed by an independent provider. When reporting a concern in good faith, you will be protected by CRI® Group’s Non-Retaliation Policy.

COMPLIANCE HOTLINE

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BS7858:2019 – everything you need to know and more!

The recent update of the BS7858 standard, “Screening of Individuals Working in a Secure Environment – Code of Practice,” places emphasis on the risk assessment of secure environment workers. The code focuses on the need for tighter controls over the pre-employment screening – and periodic re-screening – of individuals, who in their positions could potentially benefit from illicit personal gain, become compromised, or take advantage of other opportunities for creating breaches of confidentiality, trust or safety.

What is BS7858?

BS7858 stands for “Screening of Individuals Working in a Secure Environment – Code of Practice,” The BS7858 is a code of practice released by BSI (British Standards Institution), a business standards company which supports companies in achieving excellence within their field, and continuously boosting performance. Introduced in 2013, the standard was updated in September 2019 and is now considered to be the industry standard for all screening in employment, despite its original intention for use in security environments only. This code was meant to provide a critical security standard that guided employers on the screening process for security staff before offering full employment. However, the new update has widened the scope of this code.

This British Standard helps employers to screen personnel before they employ them. It gives best-practice recommendations, sets the standard for the screening of staff in an environment where the safety of people, goods or property is essential. This includes data security, sensitive and service contracts and confidential records. It can also be applied to situations where security screening is in the public’s interest. It sets out all the requirements to conduct a screening process. It covers ancillary staff, acquisitions and transfers, and the security conditions of contractors and subcontractors. It also looks at information relating to the Rehabilitation of Offenders and Data Protection Acts. CRI Group is the first and only investigative research company in the Middle East to receive the certifications BS7858:2019 and BS102000:2013, Code of Practice for the Provision of Investigative Services from internationally recognised training and certification body BSI.

Change of scope

The change of scope is possibly the biggest change of the standard. In the old document, the standard concerned the security sector only. However, the scope has been amended to allow organisations in all environments to adopt the standard when employee screening. And due to the current pandemic, this update is more significant than ever. There is a specific section of the standard that relates to risk management which states: “An integral part of risk management is to provide a structured process for organisations to identify how objectives might be affected. It is used to analyse the risk in terms of consequences and their probabilities before the organisation decides what further action is required”.

BS 7858:2019 lays out the scope of “obtaining personal background information to enable organisations to make an informed decision, based on risk, on employing an individual in a secure environment.” Those workers include business owners, directors, partners, silent partners and shareholders holding more than 10% of the business; managers, area managers, department managers, screening managers and staff; installers and service crew; security personnel; and office supervisors and staff with access to customer and system records.

The amended guidelines of the standard put the onus on the organisation’s top management to demonstrate that they are focused on the aspects of the business where the most risk lies, and the particular personnel roles that are involved within those risks areas. This is particularly important because, as the standard states, the “organisation retains ultimate responsibility for an outsourced screening process and is required to review the completed screening file.” Risks assessment includes examining specific roles that involve financial tasks, data security, management of goods, property risks or any number of “people risks” such as roles with direct access to vulnerable adults and children.

To that end, management is charged with ensuring that the organisation has proper and adequate resources and infrastructure in place to manage the adequate vetting of high-risk personnel. Management is tasked with the response and that there is a firm commitment at the top level to manage and support the coordination required to execute the screening process. Finally, management is tasked with ensuring that such responsibilities are correctly assigned and communicated throughout the organisation. The guideline also eliminates from its original text in 2012, a requirement to produce character references as part of the screening process. This decision was based on the supposition that such references are now deemed as potentially weak and difficult to verify. Managing risk effectively is essential to ensure businesses succeed and thrive in an environment of constant uncertainty. ISO 31000 aims to simplify risk management into a set of clearly understandable and actionable guidelines, that should be straightforward to implement, regardless of the size, nature, or location of a business.

BS7858:2019, a new way to mitigate employee risk during COVID-19

The far-reaching impact of the COVID-19 outbreak has affected virtually every business and economic sector worldwide, and depending on the global region, has hampered (on various levels) the ability to conduct proper and thorough background screening investigations. In the United Kingdom and the United Arab Emirates, the countrywide lockdowns forced leaders to close sites and send their workforce home. Many are having to learn how to manged people working from home (WFH) or remotely for the first time. The previous concerns about productivity, privacy and protecting sensitive information only grew more with the practice of WFH. They highlighted the vital importance of pre-employment background screening and background investigations. BS 7858:2019: the revised Standard for screening individuals working in secure environments offers a complete solution.

The revised BS7858 standard enables organisations to demonstrate a commitment to safeguarding their businesses, employees, customers and information utilising widely accepted methods that focus on risk assessment and top-down management involvement in the company’s employment policies and practices. In establishing policies and procedures around the standard, organisations can show that they place a high value on hiring individuals who possess integrity. Organisations can then task them with responsibilities designed to keep their co-workers, customers and information safe from the opposing forces that have become more prevalent in today’s ever-changing COVID-19 world. Find out more on how yo u can mitigate employee risk during this pandemic with BS7858:2019.

Playbook BS7858:2019, everything you need to know and more!

The price of a bad hire has far-reaching consequences for any business, including productivity loss, decreased employee morale, risks to employee safety and increased exposure to costly negligent hiring claims and potentially devastating litigation. The premise behind the standard is to safeguard employers from harmful or fraudulent hires.

Cases of organisations that forego conducting due diligence on a new hire – especially a hire with high-risk exposure – often end badly for those organisations. At CRI Group we know how important is your background screening to your company’s success and to give you an idea of what is new we have produced this playbook detailing the differences between BS7858:2012 standard and the new BS7858:2019 standard.

Download FREE BS7858 playbook

Managing your people through COVID-19

The COVID-19 pandemic is undeniable affecting the world. And the situation is changing at an hourly rate as we go into a second global lockdown. Businesses are having to adapt quickly to survive, i.e. cutting steps in their hiring process, and no-one knows how this will play out. However, there are ways you can mitigate the impact, learn how with this FREE ebook.

Taken as a whole, this ebook is the perfect primer for any HR professional, business leader and companies looking to avoid employee background screening risks. It provides the tools and knowledge needed to stay ahead of COVID-19 effectively. Read the answers to the following questions:

How to turn the tide’ on coronavirus crisis?;
COVID-19 Action point checklist;
Background Screening: Essential Checks;
6 steps for good practice in connection with COVID-19;
11 Steps to Reduce Personnel Costs;
COVID-19 General advice;
How to remove any danger to your business during COVID-19;
… and more!

Download your FREE playbook

Frequently asked questions about background checks

Get answers to frequently asked questions about background checks / screening cost, guidelines, check references etc.

This eBook is a compilation of all of the background screening related questions you ever needed answers to:

Does a candidate have to give consent to process a background check / screening?
How long does it take to conduct a background check?
When should I conduct pre-employment checks?
How often should I screen employees?
How to collect references and what to ask?
How much does it cost to conduct background checks?
What is the difference between employment history verification and employment reference?
How do I check on entitlement to work?
How to conduct identity checks?
What will a financial regulatory check show?
Is it possible to identify a conflict of interest during checks?
What is a bankruptcy check?
What about directorships and shareholding search?
Can I have access to a criminal watch list?
Anti-money laundering check?
Can we conduct FACIS (fraud and abuse control information system) searches?
… and MORE!

Taken as a whole, is the perfect primer for any HR professional, business leader and companies looking to avoid employee background screening risks. It provides the tools and knowledge needed to make the right decisions.

DOWNLOAD THE EBOOK

Let’s Talk!

BS7984:2008 accredited companies (such CRI Group) highlight to their clients that their security personnel are staff that can be trusted and relied upon to complete a high-quality job as the screening process highlights the level of conduct that they have presented in the past. This reassures the safety of the people, goods and property that they have been hired to protect. If you have any further questions or interest in implementing compliance solutions, please contact us.

About the Author

Zafar I. Anjum, is Group Chief Executive Officer of Corporate Research and Investigations Limited “CRI Group” (www.crigroup.com), a global supplier of investigative, forensic accounting, integrity due diligence and employee background screening services for some of the world’s leading business organizations. Headquartered in London (with a significant presence throughout the region) and licensed by the Dubai International Financial Centre-DIFC, the Qatar Financial Center-QFC, and the Abu Dhabi Global Market-ADGM, CRI Group safeguards businesses by establishing the legal compliance, financial viability, and integrity levels of outside partners, suppliers and customers seeking to affiliate with your business. CRI Group maintains offices in UAE, Pakistan, Qatar, Singapore, Malaysia, Brazil, China, USA, and the United Kingdom.

Zafar Anjum, MSc, MS, LLM, CFE, CII, MABI, MICA, Int. Dip. (Fin. Crime), Int. Dip. (GRC)
CRI Group Chief Executive Officer
37th Floor, 1 Canada Square, Canary Wharf, London, E14 5AA, United Kingdom
t: +44 207 8681415 | m: +44 7588 454959 | e: zanjum@crigroup.com

Who is CRI Group?

Based in London, CRI Group works with companies across the Americas, Europe, Africa, Middle East and Asia-Pacific as a one-stop international Risk Management, Employee Background Screening, Business Intelligence, Due Diligence, Compliance Solutions and other professional Investigative Research solutions provider. We have the largest proprietary network of background-screening analysts and investigators across the Middle East and Asia. Our global presence ensures that no matter how international your operations are we have the network needed to provide you with all you need, wherever you happen to be. CRI Group also holds BS 102000:2013 and BS 7858:2012 Certifications, is an HRO certified provider and partner with Oracle.

In 2016, CRI Group launched Anti-Bribery Anti-Corruption (ABAC®) Center of Excellence – an independent certification body established for ISO 37001:2016 Anti-Bribery Management Systems, ISO 37301 Compliance Management Systems and ISO 31000:2018 Risk Management, providing training and certification. ABAC® operates through its global network of certified ethics and compliance professionals, qualified auditors and other certified professionals. As a result, CRI Group’s global team of certified fraud examiners work as a discreet white-labelled supplier to some of the world’s largest organisations. Contact ABAC® for more on ISO Certification and training.

Filed under: All Industries, COVID-19 Insights, Due Diligence, Employee Background Check, Middle East, Resources, United Arab Emirates, Abu Dubai, United Arab Emirates, Dubai, United Kingdom, London by admin
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Debug fears for fraud prevention

Even though companies understand the fraud risk factor – nearly 77 per cent of HR professionals accept that there is a risk that employees can initiate fraudulent activity because of the work-from-home arrangement during the pandemic – more often than not, companies do not take action to implement robust fraud prevention processes in place until the organisation is exposed to fraud or appear in the news due to an investigation, incident, or external and (or) internal violation. Based on the article by ACFE, we aim to answer why companies wouldn’t adopt fraud prevention and detection measures proactively.

The answer is fear. It prevents business leaders from being proactive about fighting fraud. Business analytical tools and systems enable companies to identify red flags quickly, but they do not work as fraud prevention tools. 67 per cent of CRI® Group’s background screening survey respondents said they encountered one type of fraud – employee fraud – in their career. It’s alarming to imagine how others have encountered many other types of fraud. And still, companies pay lip service to efforts to fight fraud. So how the fear factor plays into the decision to fight fraud?

Fear of associated expenses

A fraud prevention tool is a cost you don’t always recognise an immediate return. Consider it like health or car insurance – when it comes to identifying and preventing risk and potential fraud, returns can be harder to quantify.

There are some concerns about spending money on a system that might or might not identify fraud. And if the system does identify fraudulent activity, companies are now obligated to spend more for the additional investigation and possible litigation. It might not be a significant expense for some large organisations, but the budget is better reinvested toward a company’s bottom line.

When trying to save their expenses, organisations forget that expense fraud is one of the most common forms of occupational fraud: employees fudging on their expense accounts. Earlier this year, Lookers (A London-listed company) warned investors they might be unable to buy and sell its shares from the beginning of July because of potential fraud on its books – confirming a £19m charge to correct books after fraud inquiry. Whether through fictitious charges, fake receipts or invoices, or other improper use of expense funds, an expense account is sometimes seen as a low-risk, high-reward area for fraud. It shouldn’t be. Follow these five tips for preventing and detecting expensive fraud.

Fear of technology

Based on ACFE, “companies are concerned that implementing new software technology might increase their exposure to fraud via data breaches. They’re also concerned that technology will replace internal auditors. While data encryption and similar tools can combat the risk of data breaches, addressing personnel concerns are trickier.” Technology is meant to assist but not to replace people. It helps identify the red flags, but human input and investigation are required to determine if fraud is occurring and check the facts.

Appointing a fraud investigator is a good idea in this case. Fraud investigators are the front line of establishing the facts of suspected fraud or other unethical business behaviour. A fraud investigator’s skillset and wide knowledge of fraud laws, evidence gathering, and interviewing make them the go-to expert for investigating insurance fraud, financial fraud, procurement fraud, asset recovery, cyber fraud, healthcare fraud, retail fraud, etc. In this article about fraud investigators’ role, we explore their key functions, responsibilities and knowledge, and how their skillset helps organisations.

Fear of reputation loss

“Companies might fear their reputations will take a hit if they uncover ongoing fraud schemes. Social media has become a prevalent form of information sharing, so all it takes is the hint of a rumour, and the damage is done. Employees might post the information — or alleged information — that makes it appear as though a company is attempting to hide something”, based on ACFE. This comes as the company’s advantage to be open with employees to fight fraud. Employees are less likely to whistleblow in public when they are safe and have internal options to report fraud and discrepancies.

The key ways of managing the company’s reputation are being transparent, protecting data, and conducting due diligence. It may sometimes feel like your company’s reputation is out of your control. However, you can take steps to help manage your reputation and help steer the conversation. It becomes more difficult when you wait and try to undo later the damage that has already been done. That’s why being proactive in maintaining a positive reputation is the best strategy.

Fighting fraud on the front line is key

Companies must realise that the benefits of fighting fraud far outweigh the fears. Engagement in an early fraud education process acts as a buffer, leading to fewer fraudulent losses. Procurement and payables professionals must implement efficient processes that address red flags and track — early and upfront — non-adherence to mandates. Below is a quick overview of best practices for engaging analytic tools and front-line staff to identify and prevent fraud.

Tone at the Top: Of course, top-level management must be committed to addressing fraud prevention. However, it’s just as important for middle managers to adopt a zero-tolerance policy toward fraud. A lack of integrity can be contagious. If workers see their supervisors’ rubberstamping processes, it gives them little incentive to raise concerns when they find inconsistencies.
Segregation of duties: No one should be responsible for an entire accounting function. The individual who sets up a vendor or client shouldn’t be the same person who approves invoice payments. It’s vital to have multiple eyes on the process, especially in smaller organisations where segregation of accounting duties might be limited or non-existent.
Create a fraud-fighting culture: The very perception of detection helps prevent fraud. A fraud-prevention overview should be part of new employee orientation. Companies also should sign off on internal codes of ethics that outline the steps and procedures employees can take if they suspect fraud. Tips are consistently, and by far, the most common detection method. According to the Report to the Nations, tips detected more than 40 per cent of all cases. Publicise a hotline number internally and externally for your vendors — one of your employees might even be seeking to collude with a client!
Training and process audit: Perform anti-fraud training for employees annually, at a minimum. Increase your anti-fraud training if you have a substantial number of new employees coming on board. Annual fraud awareness and detection training sends a clear message to employees about your organisation’s high standards and could deter fraudulent activity. Vet suppliers and clients. If you want to avert various fraudulent schemes, you must understand the red flags to look for when onboarding a supplier or client. Vendor vetting in real-time can mitigate upfront risks and dictate those actions required to prevent fraud from slipping undetected through the system. Vendor portals prove invaluable for vetting suppliers using automated data validation.
Take action: There’s no reason to identify or perform analysis if you’re unwilling to take action. Fraud prevention software can help you do more than detect fraud — it can highlight poor processes that might expose you to fraud. For example, you might have a legitimate vendor or client, but software can raise a red flag because of gaps in your setup process. Analyse results, make changes, monitor and constantly learn from your processes.

Don’t let fear take control

We must help diminish the fears that impede the fight against fraud. At CRI® Group, we know that we can effectively and together use the needed resources to combat them when you acknowledge those fears. We believe that analytics tools and proactive monitoring can turn idle threats into reality.

Your business is at far greater risk for losses due to fraud than organisations that take advantage of fraud prevention tools to leverage their resources: the larger the organisation, the more complex and multi-faceted the governance and responsibility matrix for fraud detection. Passive detection methods aren’t enough anymore. It’s been proven repeatedly that instilling proactive efforts to discover or reduce fraud will increase the bottom line and enhance a company’s reputation. Our fraud examiners can assist you, don’t allow fear to paralyse you into inaction.

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About CRI® Group

Based in London, CRI® Group works with companies across the Americas, Europe, Africa, Middle East and Asia-Pacific as a one-stop international Risk Management, Employee Background Screening, Business Intelligence, Due Diligence, Compliance Solutions and other professional Investigative Research solutions provider. We have the largest proprietary network of background screening analysts and investigators across the Middle East and Asia. Our global presence ensures that no matter how international your operations are, we have the network needed to provide you with all you need, wherever you happen to be. CRI® Group also holds BS 102000:2013 and BS 7858:2012 Certifications, is an HRO certified provider and partner with Oracle.

In 2016, CRI® Group launched the Anti-Bribery Anti-Corruption (ABAC®) Center of Excellence – an independent certification body established for ISO 37001:2016 Anti-Bribery Management Systems, ISO 37301 Compliance Management Systems and ISO 31000:2018 Risk Management, providing training and certification. ABAC® operates through its global network of certified ethics and compliance professionals, qualified auditors and other certified professionals. As a result, CRI® Group’s global team of certified fraud examiners work as a discreet white-labelled supplier to some of the world’s largest organisations. Contact ABAC® for more on ISO Certification and training.

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Speak up | Report Illegal, Unethical or Improper Behaviour

If you find yourself in an ethical dilemma or suspect inappropriate or illegal conduct, and you feel uncomfortable reporting through normal communication channels or wish to raise the issue anonymously, use CRI® Group’s Compliance Hotline. The Compliance Hotline is a secure and confidential reporting channel managed by an independent provider. When reporting a concern in good faith, you will be protected by CRI® Group’s Non-Retaliation Policy.

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