Cautions on the use of Public records
As useful as these databases are in locating people you need to talk to, they are also the riskiest to use and potentially the most expensive. Keep these guidelines in mind:
- Verify, verify, verify: The old computer adage, "Garbage In, Garbage Out," was never truer than with these databases. Usually this information is contributed by the person it is about (is anyone honest about their weight on driver's licenses?), comes from handwritten forms which are keypunched into the database. Errors are rampant and it is essential that any information you find from these files be verified.
- Consider the source: Understand how the data came to be in the database, what is required of that particular record, what kind of checking is done of the veracity of the information. Public records databases may be more reliable than consumer records, but someone with no car, property records or utility bills may be found in consumer records.
- Get specifics: If you only have the person's name you need to search, and it is a common name, you might as well not search. Unless you have some specific information that can identify the entry as the person you are looking for, you cannot assume you have found the right person.
- Don't expect miracles: Some data is just not available. You can check the same name in different databases and just get the same information over and over. Know what you are searching. Also, privacy laws are getting stricter, know what you can reasonably expect to find, and don't expect more.
- Shop carefully: Know what you are paying for and which database is being searched when you look at different vendors. You may be charged a premium for searching a database you could have gotten at directly for much cheaper.
TABLE OF CONTENTS
- How to use public record databases
- Ways agencies make public record databases available
- How to locate public record databases
- Consumer records databases
- Cautions on the use of public records database
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