I think your wisest course of action is to seek the advice of an employment law attorney.
It is extremely difficult, and often impossible, to correct and/or remove inaccuracies from background check reports produced by "in-house" investigations or web-based information brokers. Employers can use private investigators, employment screening companies or online data brokers to conduct searches. The Fair Credit Reporting Act (the FCRA) sets national standards for employment screening, but these standards apply only to outside companies like the consumer reporting agencies.
The FCRA states that anyone denied employment based on negative information in a background report must receive a free copy of the report and instructions on how to dispute the results. The law does yet not cover employers who conduct their own searches using web-based sites, however, and the applicant does not always, then, have the ability to obtain a copy of such a background check.
According to FCRA tenets, the names and birth dates must match exactly for the data to be reported. With most web-based data, however, a check will reveal all information collected on anyone with the same name, regardless of whether the ages, locations, or even the sexes of the individuals match or not. These overbroad background checks are typically rife with errors, inaccuracies and/or confusing data.
Web-based brokers, such as Intelius or Choicepoint, offer background checks for a fee and usually will have a disclaimer that says something like, "You should not assume that this data provides a complete or accurate history of any person's criminal history." It is hard to prevent the tainting of your name if you share the same name with someone who has a criminal or unsavory past. Because the information provided is usually accurate in and of itself, there is little recourse available.
Although the wise employer using such a background check will research and verify all of the information provided in a check to ensure its accuracy, there is no guarantee that an employer will or generally any legal requirement for an employer to do so. The employer can generally reject an application and applicant as long as he/she does not violate discrimination laws.
Employers must be very careful when hiring employees to make sure that the material showing up in a background check could not potentially lead to a negligent hiring (or a negligent retention) lawsuit in the future. If there is any indication in a background check that there is a likelihood of criminal or tortious behavior by an employee, the employer can be held liable if such behavior occurs during the course of employment. In other words, hiring an individual who may pose a threat to others can be extremely costly to an employer. It is often safer for an employer to reject an applicant with questionable data appearing on a background check (whether the data is correct or not) than to hire the applicant.
I think it would be wise for you (and all those looking for employment) to do a background check of your own before applying for a job.
You are entitled, under the Fair and Accurate Credit Transaction Act, to a free copy of your credit reports from TransUnion, Experian and Equafax once a year, for instance. Order a copy of each and review them for errors. These errors can often be corrected by contacting the reporting agency and demonstrating that the information is reported in error. Errors can sometimes occur when there has been identity theft.
Check your DMV records by requesting a copy from your Department of Motor Vehicles, to make sure they are accurate. If there are DUI's or other infractions showing up that should not be there, have them corrected.
You can check court records through your county to make sure your name and address are not showing up on someone else's record.
Texas state law may also allow you to see copies of your personnel files from previous jobs held, and you can review these.
Conduct a Google and Yahoo and AskJeeves search of your name by putting it in quotes. See what turns up. If you find anything appearing under your name that is false, or truthful but embarrassing, or false and defamatory, etc., contact the webmaster or site owner to see if it can be removed without a court order. Some will remove any material when requested but some won't without a court order unless it is obviously illegal (pornography, infringing, defamatory, etc.).
In other words, try to cleanse your Internet image, as most employers will do an online check of applicants (including looking at blogs, MySpace entries, and Facebook) and correct all public record errors. This is time-consuming, but often worth the effort made.
Some states have tried to close the legal loopholes in the FCRA that allow for misinformation to show up on web-based background check sites. And there have been bills introduced to try and combat "dirty data" from appearing. And there has been some talk about libel suits against these dirty-data sites (although, to my knowledge, none have been brought successfully).
Until something is done on the federal level or through state laws, it is pretty much up to individuals to protect their own personal data by opting out of offers made through insurance companies and banks and retail stores (who will often sell your personal data) and by watching what you publish online about yourself and by protecting your personal identity from identity thieves.
And, as I said originally, you should contact an employment law attorney for advice and direction.
