5 BEST Cyber Background Check Services (2025)

Cyber security checks are digital investigations carried out to understand the risks and threats affecting the virtual world. They are also used to learn about a person’s background through social media checks, digital footprint analysis, and even scans of the ‘dark web’, a part of the internet that is not listed by search engines and is often associated with illegal activities.

Cyber threats have become very common in today’s world. Henceforth, it is important to conduct cyber background checks to identify the potential risks associated with digital communication. Using these checks you can find out about individual’s previous records of suspicious online activities, involvement in cybercrimes, and more. Let us now look at the best tools for the cyber background check purpose, their capabilities, and more.

After researching and reviewing several cyber background check tools, I have shortlisted a few based on their features, ease of access, and comprehensive digital footprint analysis. Read more…

Top Cyber Background Check Services: Free & Paid

Tool Name	Key Information	Free Trial	Links
Spokeo	Criminal records, education verification, employment verification, professional reference checks, and professional license checks.	One-time Detailed Search Report for $0.95	Learn More
Social Catfish	Verify images, locate aliases, usernames, and dating scams	3-day reverse searches for $6.48	Learn More
Intelius	Criminal Records, court records, social media profiles, and email addresses.	5-day trial at $0.95 for unlimited reports	Learn More
PeopleLooker	social media activity, email addresses, phone numbers, blogs, or websites they own.	7-day trial for $1 up to 100 reports	Learn More
Checkr	Criminal background, drug testing, trust and safety screenings, MVR Checks	No	Learn More

1) Spokeo

Spokeo’s cyber background check connects the dots to reveal an individual’s real identity. From my personal experience, I have found Spokeo very useful in uncovering phone numbers and address details of people.

It also provided me with their social media profiles like Instagram and Facebook, even dating sites where they are on. In some instances, to my surprise the background report revealed some controversial info like online money laundering scams and even sexual offenses that raised my eyebrows.

Features:

• Deep People Search: This feature reveals information like ‘past and present addresses ‘, which can help you track someone’s movements over time. You can also acquire details on their relatives and family members, additionally, it can display education details, occupation, and more.
• Criminal Background Check: Spokeo allows you to check someone’s arrest records, felonies, and past offenses, such as drug possession, assault, or theft. I used it to check my service maid’s background check and found her to be clean.
• Online aliases: A person may have different aliases in the digital world to hide their real identity. But Spokeo helped me reveal the true identity of a person I met online at a talent search site under a different username.
• Fraud Investigations: Spokeo can detect real-time frauds in the digital space and alert the user in cases of concern. Once, I was investigating a supposedly online purchase scam, but this tool confirmed the legitimacy of the purchaser and the recipient.
• Law Enforcement: Spokeo uses the OSINT (Open-Source Intelligence) technique to reveal someone’s digital footprint. With the help of OSINT, I could find out about several identities’ online activities and reputations in the virtual world.

Pricing:

Here are the subscription and pricing plans for Spokeo:

Monthly Membership	One-time Detailed Search Report (does not require subscription)	7-DayTrial Offer
$29.95/m	$0.95	$0.95

Visit Spokeo >>

7-Day Trial for $0.95

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2) Social Catfish

Social Catfish is a people search tool that safeguards users from falling prey to catfishing. Using it I could access vast databases of verified sources and perform cyber background checks to uncover digital fraud.

This tool could even find out that my former dating partner was having an affair with my best friend as she had created a fake Tinder account right under my nose. Social Catfish can also verify phishing attempts and fake profiles and safeguard against online transaction scams.

Features:

• Image verification: Social Catfish can verify the legitimacy of an image using this feature. I have used this feature to verify several digital identities that I came in contact with through social networks.
• Username tracking: Unveiling a username to see what’s beneath can safeguard against cybercrimes. I have used this tool several times to reveal numerous details associated with usernames on social media who would frequently send me friend requests despite me removing them.
• Name search: Although this process is a bit time-consuming, I have found it effective when carrying out cyber background checks on my employees. It can bring out details like email addresses, phone numbers, relatives, relationship status, criminal records, and more which helped me get to know the individuals better.
• Phone number identification: This feature allows you to track and reveal who’s behind those annoying anonymous calls. I personally used it to track a number that claimed to be from an insurance company. Social Catfish verified the number as spam and revealed the caller’s details.
• Email verification: With the help of reverse email search, I can easily verify the genuineness of any email I receive from unknown senders.

Pricing:

Here are the different subscription options available from Social Catfish:

Type of service	Pricing	Renewal amount	3-day paid trial
Reverse image search	$28.94	$19.95	$6.48
Image search	$28.97	$19.95	$6.87
Lifetime	$397 (one-time fee)	Not applicable	Not applicable

Visit Social Catfish

3-Day Trial For $6.48

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3) Intelius

Intelius is a cyber background check tool that extracts information from publicly accessible, verified sources to deliver accurate reports. I have used Intelius to verify the identities of people known to me professionally and personally.

The results that I’ve come across are mostly accurate, with a few glitches here and there, such as occasional missing information or outdated data. As far as I’ve seen it generates quite a comprehensive report that includes contact and location details, social media connections, criminal records, cyber offenses, and more.

Features:

• Criminal Background: Intelius can dig up deep the complete background of an Individual and offer details like criminal records, such as traffic tickets, felonies, sex offenses, misdemeanors, scams, etc. It has proved itself as reliable when I was looking for new tenants to my property.
• Social Media Profiles: I could easily find out about someone’s social media connections using Intelius’s cyber background check. Whenever I used it, the reports were accurate.
• Genealogy Reports: Using this feature, I could find a connection between an office trainee and a person with whom I fought a legal battle for some property deeds long ago.
• Dating profile check: Intelius’ deep background check prevents people from falling prey to dating scams. I remember an instance when my friend Edward met a girl from Tinder. One day, Edward used this tool to verify her background and the tool revealed that she served a prison sentence because of a dating fraud.
• Online Identity Verification: Intelius has helped me cross-check online identities against their official records to verify their claims.

Pricing:

Here are the updated pricing plans from Intelius:

Reverse Phone Lookup + People Search	People Search	Address Lookup + People Search
$35.3/m	$25.11/m bimonthly scheme	$34.95/m
$0.95 for 5 days trial	$25.11/m monthly scheme	$0.95 for 7 days trial

Special Offer: Pay only $1.99 to access ‘unlimited reports’ for 5 days.

Visit Intelius >>

5-Day Trial at $0.95

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4) PeopleLooker

PeopleLooker allows you to conduct cyber background checks on people to better understand their digital footprints. It gathers data only from trusted sources to produce accurate reports.

I have used PeopleLooker to reveal the real identity of a person I met on Facebook. The Reverse Username Search feature quickly revealed the hidden truth behind that username and revealed that she was faking her identity.

Features:

• Safeguard from online scams: The People Search feature digs deeper into a person’s background to identify hidden demons. I found this tool quite useful for safeguarding myself against dating scams, e-commerce fraud, and cyberbullying.
• Fast response time: The people search site accesses verified sources, including financial, social, and criminal databases, to extract data and provide detailed information within a few minutes.
• Identify anonymous callers: You often receive calls from anonymous callers. With the reverse phone number feature, you can trace the details of these calls and safeguard yourself from cyber harassment. A number was disturbing me for nearly a month and then I used PeopleLooker to trace the person behind it. After the tool revealed details, I reported the same to the cybercrime department for necessary action.
• Email search: The email search option allows you to find details hidden behind an email address, such as the owner, social media links, criminal records, etc. Last year, I received an email from the civil court stating that I must produce my house papers at the mentioned address for verification. I immediately opened the Email Search tab from PeopleLooker and pasted the email address from where I received the mail. It took just 30 seconds to identify and display it as spam.
• Unclaimed money frauds: Using this tool, you can verify whether any unclaimed money is available under your name. I once received a call from Robin Jones, identifying himself as a Claims Manager from the Federal Bank. He said that I had almost $2000 unclaimed money waiting to be reimbursed and asked for my bank credentials. I found it rather fishy as reports of cyberbanking frauds were making rounds. I tried out PeopleLooker to check for this unclaimed money, and although it took me at least 5 attempts, the tool showed that I had no such money to my name. I verified the same the next day by visiting the bank and, as a result, saved myself from falling prey to online banking fraud.

Pricing:

I have provided the different subscription options for PeopleLooker:

7-DayTrial Offer	3-Month Subscription	Monthly Subscription
$1 to access 100 reports.	$19.19/month	$23.99/month

Visit PeopleLooker >>

7-Day Trial for $1

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5) Checkr

Checkr is a cyber background checking tool that offers various services, such as identity verification, criminal background checks, drug testing, educational background checks, and more.

Working in the vigilance department for a reputed corporate house, I have extensively used Checkr for background checks. I have yet to identify any accuracy issues with this tool. However, I wish it acted faster with generating outcomes.

Features:

• Social Media Screening: This feature analyzes an individual’s social media profiles and activities to assess their online behavior. While using Checkr, this feature helped me identify inappropriate remarks and content sharing associated with a newly joined candidate.
• Trust and Safety Screenings: This is the latest feature that focuses on the broader areas of the cyber world. It uses court records and criminal data to create safer marketplaces and communities.
• Data Breach Involvement Checks: Given the rise in data breaches, Checkr tries to assess someone’s data to ensure whether any breaches have taken place.
• Drug Testing: The pre-employment drug testing process helps reduce absenteeism and promote a healthy work environment. Candidates with a history of drug and substance abuse can be verified using this cyber background checking tool.
• Cyber Skill Verification: For positions requiring specific technical skills, such as cybersecurity roles, a cyber background check could include verification of the candidate’s proficiencies and certifications.

Pricing:

The starting pricing plans are listed in the table below:

Basic +	Essential	Professional
$29.99/check	$54.99/check	$79.99/check

Link: https://checkr.com/

Reasons to conduct a cyber background check

With digital evolution, the concern for safety and security has become higher. Today we are connected through a virtual web, serving different purposes across the professional and personal spheres. As a result, it is extremely important that you focus on the security aspects of digital communications.

• Personal Safety and Security: Conducting cyber background checks is necessary for personal safety and security in the virtual world. They can review and identify potential digital threats to safeguard your online and offline communications. This is very important as digital footprints can reveal sensitive information about individuals.
• Employment Screening and Corporate Due Diligence: Corporates have their own rules when screening candidates. Irrespective of size, most corporate houses emphasize cyber background checks to learn about candidates’ online behavior.
• Online Dating and Personal Relationships: Creating friendships and engaging in personal relationships via these digital platforms may question the authenticity of such communications. Digital deceptions are more common these days, so cyber background checks are necessary to verify the credentials of people you meet and interact with within the virtual world.
• Identity Theft Prevention: Conversely, cyber checks are crucial for spotting identity thefts and digital scams. One common example is phishing, where scammers try to trick you into giving out your personal information. Then again, don’t ignore those online shopping scams, where scammers use fake websites or ads to get you to send them money or goods. Cyber security checks can protect against these online frauds like money laundering, identity fakes, and banking scams.

Best Practices for Cyber Background Checks

Conducting cyber background checks has become compulsory to ensure security and mitigate the risks. However, you must maintain certain legal and ethical boundaries whenever you conduct a background cyber check.

Obtaining Consent Where Necessary

If you are following ethical standards, obtaining consent from the individual to conduct their cyber background check is necessary. Some jurisdictions adhere strictly to these norms. Getting consent from the person of interest creates a relationship of trust between the parties involved. You may seek cyber background check consent for employment screening, tenant application, or other purposes.

Respecting Privacy and Legal Boundaries

You must conduct cyber background checks within the United States under the FCRA (Fair Credit Reporting Act). The FCRA law defines what is allowed and what is not when accessing and using someone’s personal information. It is always advisable to adhere to the FCRA boundaries to respect digital privacy. You should not invade an individual’s areas that do not meet your search intent.

Ensuring Accuracy of Information Gathered

When conducting cyber background checks, you must verify the accuracy of the information obtained. There is plenty of information that could be more accurate on the internet. So, be very careful and verify the legitimacy of the data before making any judgments.

DIY Cyber Background Check Tips

I have used reverse look-up sites like Intelius, Social Catfish, etc., to get basic reports for free while conducting DIY cyber background checks. However, here are some of the better DIY tricks that you can try.

• Google: To get more detailed and first-hand information on your own, you can try the most well-known search engine, Google. It has a huge database that contains billions of information. If not their complete detail, you may still be able to find their social media account, profiles on certain sites, images, any news reports related to them, etc.
• Social Media: Once you find their social media profiles or if you are already aware of their username on social platforms, you can easily gather valuable data from their accounts. For example, you can find their location in tagged places, their friends, some of their habits, usual hangout spots, bits of their personality, and much more.
• Public records: I would also suggest you go through publicly available records if you are doing some serious investigation. This may involve including law enforcement, however, with the right permission and solid search purpose, you can get these types of records.
• Mutual friends: If you have any mutual friends, you can also ask them about your person of interest for some information, however, it may not entirely be reliable as you may not be aware of their personal relationship. Different relationship dynamics may affect what information they give to you.

One last tip I’d like to add is that no matter the type of search you conduct, avoid any form of stalking and abide by the ethical and legal laws and regulations of background checks.

The Future of Cyber Background Checks

Thanks to advanced technology, the future of cyber background checks looks promising. Imagine having a super-smart computer that can quickly review all the information available online about a person. It is not only about tracking social media but also about looking at the bigger picture and figuring out every minute detail.

Machine Learning and Artificial Intelligence have evolved a lot in recent years which has helped in creating more sophisticated data analysis tools that can produce accurate results most of the time. Apart from offering users with accuracy, these technologies also have the ability to identify patterns and risks.

With higher power comes greater responsibility, hence, creating a fine balance between responsibility and innovation is necessary without invading personal space.

The Dark Web and You: What Lies Beneath in Cyber Background Checks

Keeping an eye on the dark web is super important when we’re talking about checking someone’s background online, especially for jobs or fields with a big risk of cyber trouble. The dark web is like the secret alleyways of the internet, where many shady deals go down, including selling stolen usernames and personal info.

By watching what’s happening in these hidden corners, companies can catch if someone’s trying to sell their employees’ or customers’ private details. This way, they can jump into action before any harm is done.

Henceforth, it’s super important for companies to be proactive in conducting cyber background checks to ensure that the candidates they appoint are clean and not connected to the dark web. It allows the companies to protect their data and operations and also add more security in the required areas.

Case Studies: The Impact of Cyber Background Checks on Real Lives

Case Study 1: The 2021 attack on the Colonial Pipeline disrupted gas supplies for days, and the operational technology (OT) systems were shut down in an abundance of caution to prevent attackers from gaining access.

Case Study 2: In the 2020 Universal Health Services (UHS) attack, 400 hospitals and health facilities in the United States and the United Kingdom lost access to their patient’s medical records, resulting in ambulances being rerouted and delayed patient care.

Case Study 3: In the 2021 attack on the Oldsmar water treatment plant in Florida, hackers remotely accessed the system and briefly changed the levels of lye in the drinking water. The effects would have been more serious if the operator hadn’t looked at the computer monitor and witnessed the chemical levels changing.

The above case studies clearly state the importance of cyber background security checks as there are serious consequences, hence, it is important to fight all types of cyberattacks.

Myths VS Reality: Debunking Common Misconceptions About Cyber Background Checks

Let us look at some of the most common myths of cyber background checks and debunk them.

Myth 1: All information found online is accurate.

Reality: While cyber background checks disclose valuable information about a person’s online activities, they may need to be more accurate. The truth is they may also offer outdated or misleading information at times.

Myth 2: Cyber Background Checks Invade Privacy

Reality: Cyber background checks are conducted within legal frameworks that respect privacy laws. They are designed to access only publicly available information or data. When accessing sensitive information, following these legal frameworks for security is necessary.

Myth 3: Cyber background checks are only for criminal histories.

Reality: With cyber background checks you can uncover much more than just criminal histories. It can provide information on various details like employment, email address, social media, marital status, properties, etc.

Myth 4: Cyber Background Checks are Foolproof

Reality: Cyber Background checks have limitations like, they may not be able to detect certain crucial data due to privacy settings on the target’s side. There is also the possibility of pseudonyms and undigitized data, or lack of information in the tool’s database itself.

Myth 5: The cyber background check tools are instant

Reality: Yes, tools like Social Catfish, Intelius, Spokeo, etc are instant. However, there are times when you may have to try several attempts to get accurate data, then there are tools that may not provide any information at all, even after 100 attempts. There are also some tools that may take days and even weeks to offer complete information with no guarantee of accuracy.

Myth 6: Only Tech Savy can Conduct Effective Cyber Background checks

Reality: Using cyber background check tool takes only putting few inputs on the search bar and clicking on the Search button. These tools and sites are designed to conduct complete searches on their own without any help other than the input. Therefore even a 10 year old or any technologically challenged individual can conduct searches on these platforms without any extra configurations.

Difference between Cyber Background Checks and Traditional Background Checks

The traditional background check is the act of verifying someone’s information physically. In this method a person digs up information by asking questions to mutuals and people associated with the subject. It also involves checking public records, phone books, etc manually.

While Cyber background check is an entirely digital way of finding details about a person. This involves using background check tools, search engines, social media, checking online records like comments on posts or online communities they are active in and much more.