The company existed
Registry entry, filings and website history show the employer was trading during the dates claimed, at a size that fits the role.
OSINT Employment Verification: Checking Work History and Credentials
OSINT employment verification checks the work history and credentials on a CV against records the candidate does not control: company registries, official license registers, institutions' own verification channels and years of archived web pages. It answers a narrow question well: did these jobs, degrees and licenses exist as described?
- Employers, roles and dates
- Degree mills and foreign degrees
- Official license registries
- Fake references
Short answer
OSINT employment verification confirms that a candidate's employers existed and traded during the stated dates, that the role left independent traces, that each degree comes from a recognized institution and was awarded, that licenses appear in the regulator's own register, and that references are real people at those companies. Focused checks take from 10 business days.
What OSINT Verifies in a Work History
Five claims, each checked against a record that someone other than the candidate keeps.
The job and dates fit
Archived team pages, press releases, publications, patents, conference talks and public code that place the person in that role at that time.
The degree is real
The institution is recognized and the award is confirmed by the registrar or an official verification service.
The license is current
The license number, name and status appear in the issuing regulator's own register, with any disciplinary history.
The referee is who they say
The referee worked at that company, overlapped with the candidate, and is reachable through the company rather than only a mobile number.
Red Flags in CVs, Degrees and References
Most discrepancies have an innocent explanation, such as a renamed or acquired employer. These are the patterns that deserve a second look.
| What we see | What it can mean | How it is checked |
|---|---|---|
| Employer website registered after the dates on the CV | A company created to back up the CV, or a later rebrand | Domain records, web archives and the registry entry under former names |
| No registry record for the employer | An invented company, a trading name or a foreign branch | Registries in each relevant country, trading-name and branch records |
| A degree awarded for "life experience" | A degree mill | Recognition by the education authority; the accreditor's own standing |
| License number that does not resolve | A typo, a lapsed license or a borrowed number | The regulator's online register, searched by number and by name |
| Referee reachable only by mobile or free email | A friend, or a paid reference service | The referee's own trace at the employer during the overlap |
| Two full-time roles at the same dates | Contracting, a CV error or concurrent employment | Public records for each role and its dates |
We report what the records show, not a verdict on the candidate. Where a role cannot be traced from open sources, the report says so and suggests the direct confirmation that would settle it. For senior hires, verification usually sits inside a wider executive background check; if a CV turns out to be part of deliberate fraud against you, it can move into a fraud investigation. Verification is one of the OSINT services for HR teams we run.
Degree Mills, License Registries and OSINT Checks
A copy of a diploma or license proves little. The check goes to the institution, the accreditor and the regulator's register directly.
Degrees. The FTC describes a degree awarded without substantial coursework or contact with instructors as a sign of a diploma mill, and warns that some fake programs make up an accreditor or falsely claim accreditation by a real one; it suggests checking the accreditor on the Department of Education's site (FTC). For UK degrees, Hedd lets employers confirm a graduate's institution, award and dates, and keeps a list of bogus institutions (Hedd). Degrees from abroad are handled in our international background checks.
Licenses. We check the official register of the body that issued the license, not a certificate or a third-party directory. For example, FINRA BrokerCheck shows a broker's or adviser's employment history, licenses and disclosed violations (FINRA); nurses, doctors, lawyers, accountants and engineers are listed by their state or national licensing boards. A license that is current but carries a disciplinary note is reported with that note.
How OSINT Employment Verification Runs
Four steps, starting from the CV and the candidate's notice, ending with a claim-by-claim report.
- Confirm the purpose and consentWe agree which claims to verify and how the candidate is told. In the US the FCRA disclosure and written authorization come before any work.
- List the claimsEach employer, title, date range, degree, license and referee becomes a line to verify, with the candidate's identifiers.
- Verify each claim at its sourceRegistries, archives, institutions, regulators' registers and the referees' own traces, including former company names after mergers.
- Report claim by claimA senior analyst reviews the result: confirmed, partly confirmed, not found or contradicted, each with its source.
FCRA Consent and Adverse Action for Verification Reports
When a third party verifies a US candidate's history for a hiring decision, the result is a consumer report, and the candidate has a right to see it and explain discrepancies before you decide.
The FTC's guidance for employers requires a stand-alone written disclosure and written authorization before the report is ordered, a pre-adverse action notice with a copy of the report and a summary of rights before you act on it, and an adverse action notice afterwards (FTC). That pause matters in verification: an employer that seems not to exist may simply have been renamed, and the candidate is often the fastest source of the explanation.
If the work includes interviews with former colleagues about character or reputation, it becomes an investigative consumer report, which needs its own disclosure within three days of the request (15 U.S.C. §1681d). The full consent and adverse-action process, and the UK rules, are on the parent employee screening page. We do not use pretexting, fake recruiter profiles or purchased data to reach records.
Verify the CV Before the Offer
Send the CV, the role and your offer date. We reply with the claims we will check, a delivery date and a fixed quote. Single-claim checks can sometimes be done in one business day.
Employment Verification FAQ
Our finalist's CV lists a startup employer we can't find anywhere online — can OSINT employment verification tell us whether that company really existed and whether she worked there?
Usually yes. OSINT employment verification checks registries for the company under current and former names, then domain records, web archives, funding announcements and press. Startups often leave team pages, launch posts or public code that name early staff. If the company existed but her role left no trace, we say so and suggest the direct confirmation that would settle it.
Our candidate for a finance role claims an MBA from an online university that offers degrees "based on professional experience" — how do you check whether it's a degree mill?
We check whether the school and its accreditor are recognized: in the US, that means looking for the accreditor on the Department of Education's site, as the FTC suggests. We also look at how the school awards degrees, its registration and address history, and whether the accreditor itself is real. Degrees given for experience alone are a classic diploma-mill sign.
We're hiring a licensed nurse and an engineer at the same time — can you confirm their professional licenses are valid and see whether either has disciplinary history?
Yes. We search the official register of the board that issued each license, by license number and by name, and record the status, expiry and any public disciplinary actions. We do not rely on copies of certificates or third-party directories, and a license held in another state or country is checked with that regulator.
I think one of the references our candidate gave us is a friend pretending to be his former manager — is there a lawful way to check that before we call them?
Yes. We check whether the referee has an independent trace at that employer during the period they overlapped: team pages, press, publications or professional profiles consistent with the role. We also check whether the phone number and email belong to the company. We do not call referees under false pretenses or use fake profiles.
Our US hiring team found that a candidate's job title at a previous company doesn't match what we verified — what do we have to do before withdrawing the offer?
If a third-party report contributed to the decision, send a pre-adverse action notice with a copy of the report and the FTC summary of rights, and give the candidate time to respond; titles often differ because of internal naming or promotions. If you still withdraw the offer, send the adverse action notice. State and city rules may add steps.
How quickly can you verify a senior candidate's last three employers and two degrees, given that our offer is due in about two weeks?
A focused check like that typically takes from 10 business days, which fits a two-week window if the candidate's consent is ready on day one. Some single claims can be confirmed in a business day. If time is shorter, urgent delivery costs 50% more, and the fee goes down if we miss the agreed date.
Sources and Notes
- FTC: College degree scams
- Hedd: Higher Education Degree Datacheck
- FINRA BrokerCheck
- FTC: Using consumer reports — what employers need to know
- 15 U.S.C. §1681d: disclosure of investigative consumer reports
Sources checked 8 October 2026. Figures about third-party firms and tools are as published by them or by the cited source on that date.