Accurate Background

What Accurate Background does

Accurate Background is a global provider of automated employment background screening and workforce compliance solutions, founded in 1997 by Dave Dickerson and headquartered in Irvine, California. The company operates as the largest privately held, minority-owned background screening provider worldwide, serving more than 16,000 customers across six continents and supporting screening in 30 languages. Its core product offering comprises automated background checks, drug screening, occupational health testing, and ongoing workforce monitoring services, with the screening platform integrated into 70+ Applicant Tracking Systems (ATS) and HR technology platforms, enabling embedded ordering, status tracking, and compliance audit trails within customer hiring workflows. Industry coverage spans healthcare, financial services, transportation, retail, staffing, and the gig economy, with customers ranging from startups to government agencies.

The company's technology stack relies on live connections to court record repositories and government databases across multiple jurisdictions, processing 60M+ searches annually, with regulatory accreditations including ISO 27001, Professional Background Screening Association (PBSA) membership, Australian Criminal Intelligence Commission (ACIC) accreditation, and Australian Federal Police (AFP) authorized-agent status. The most recent product release, the Accel platform launched in Australia in September 2024, represents a next-generation platform investment following the 2023 acquisition of VerifyNow. The geographic footprint has been built through a combination of acquisitions (Vero Screening in the UK, July 2022; VerifyNow in APAC, March 2023; Orange Tree Employment Screening, June 2024) and greenfield expansion (India delivery operations, 2022).

The business model is enterprise B2B with custom, quote-based per-search and per-package pricing; revenue is generated from employers and staffing firms ordering background checks, drug screens, and occupational health assessments on a transaction-by-transaction or subscription basis, supplemented by enterprise contracts with mid-market and large employers that bundle screening volumes. Go-to-market combines direct enterprise sales with channel distribution through ATS integrations, and the company has been privately held and PE-backed since Apax Partners invested in February 2020 to finance the international rollout.

Name

Accurate Background

Legal name

Accurate Background LLC

Website

https://accurate.com

Company type

Private

Founded year

1997

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

1,001–5,000 employees

Short description

Accurate Background is a global provider of automated employment background screening, drug testing, and workforce compliance solutions serving 16,000+ customers across healthcare, financial services, transportation, retail, and staffing, with operations spanning six continents.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Employment Background Screening Services

NAICS

Investigation and Personal Background Check Services (561611), Investigation and Security Services (5616)

SIC

Services-Employment Agencies (7361)

akta.pro primary industry

Pre-Employment Background Checks & Screening (BPAKAEAA)

akta.pro secondary industries

Criminal Background Checks (National/State/County) (BPACALAA), Employment Verification (Work History & References) (BPACALAB), Continuous Monitoring & Post-Hire Screening (BPACALAJ), Credential, Education & Professional License Verification (BPAKAEAI), Credit History Checks (Permissible Purpose) (BPACALAF)

Keywords

• Employment background screening
• Workforce screening services
• Criminal background checks
• Pre-employment verification
• Workforce compliance solutions

Headquarters

HQ city

Irvine

HQ country

United States

HQ region

North America

Offices5 records

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Technology or R&D, Marketing or Sales, Infrastructure

Revenue model

1. Background Screening Services: The company generates revenue primarily through background screening services, including criminal history searches, employment and education verification, credit checks, and other screening services. Pricing is custom/quotes-based and not publicly disclosed. The revenue model appears to be a mix of per-search/transaction fees and potentially subscription-like arrangements for enterprise clients with volume commitments.
2. Monitoring Services: Ongoing criminal and arrest record monitoring services for employed individuals, providing continuous protection for organizations post-hire.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels5 records

Marketing channels7 records

Core offering

Accurate Background is a provider of employment background screening services including criminal history searches, employment and education verification, credit checks, drug testing, identity verification, and ongoing workforce monitoring. The company operates its own technology platform (Accel) with an integrated API and pre-built integrations to 70+ applicant tracking systems, enabling employers to order, track, and manage screening results end-to-end.

Product overview

Accurate Background offers a unified employment screening platform with multiple integrated products and modules. The core offering includes Employee Screening Services encompassing criminal background checks, credit checks, drug and health screening, identity verification, verifications, global searches, and monitoring services. The platform includes technology products: the Background Check API for developer integration, Accurate ATS Integrations connecting to 70+ applicant tracking systems, Client Ordering Platform for high-volume screening, Candidate Portal for mobile-first candidate experience, and Automated Court Access for court record verification. The company provides industry-specific solutions for healthcare, financial services, transportation, retail, staffing, insurance, and gig/marketplaces sectors. Regional services are offered in the US, UK (via Vero Screening), and Australia/New Zealand (via VerifyNow). In September 2024, the company launched Accel, a next-generation Australian-based platform for enterprise and government clients.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• Employee Background Screening
• Accel Platform
• Background Check API
• Candidate Portal
• Automated Court Access
• Ongoing Workforce Monitoring
• UK Employment Screening Services
• Australia Employment Screening Services
• Healthcare Workforce Screening
• Financial Services Workforce Screening
• Transportation Workforce Screening
• Staffing Industry Screening
• Gig & Marketplace Worker Screening

Quantifiable outcome

• 16,000+ customers worldwide rely on Accurate Background for employment screening services
• +2 more outcomes

Named customers8 records

Segments15 records

Ideal customer profiles2 records

Technology focussed Yes

API detail

Has API

Yes

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Integration8 records

Feature6 records

Partnerships

Seven partnerships are on record, tiered core and minor.

• Orange Tree Employment ScreeningcoreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 4 June 2024Accurate Background acquired Orange Tree Employment Screening, a technology-driven background screening provider, in June 2024. The acquisition aims to enhance Accurate's service capabilities and global reach, particularly in key markets such as healthcare.
• VerifyNow Pty LtdcoreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 22 March 2023VerifyNow was acquired by Accurate Background in March 2023 to expand Accurate's presence in Australia and New Zealand. The acquisition added a new office in Australia and integrated VerifyNow's operations into Accurate's global strategy, supporting multinational clients. VerifyNow now trades as Accurate Background in Australia.
• Australia Post Screening CustomersminorOthers · 22 March 2023Following Australia Post's screening division closure, Accurate Australia stepped in to serve Australia Post screening customers, absorbing those clients into its Australian operations.
• Vero Screening Ltd.coreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 19 July 2022Vero Screening, the UK's largest independent employment screening provider, was acquired by Accurate Background in July 2022 to bolster its global expansion and vertical market expertise. The deal maintained Vero's brand and leadership while expanding Accurate's presence in the UK and regulated industries. Vero Screening Limited continues trading as Accurate in the UK.
• Australian Criminal Intelligence Commission (ACIC)coreStrategic or Co-development PartnerAccurate Australia is ACIC-accredited to conduct Criminal History Checks through the National Police Checking service. This is a core accreditation enabling the company to process Nationally Coordinated Criminal History Checks (NCCHC) for standard and volunteer roles in Australia.
• Australian Federal Police (AFP)coreStrategic or Co-development PartnerAccurate Australia is AFP-authorized to conduct National Police Checks through the AFP service. This authorization is core to the company's ability to provide police check services in Australia.
• Professional Background Screening Association (PBSA)coreOthersAccurate Background is a member of the Professional Background Screening Association (PBSA), the industry body setting standards for employment background screening providers globally.

Scale indicators7 records

Recent moves8 records

Expansion highlights5 records

Direct peers

• Checkr: Checkr is a venture-backed, API-first background screening platform focused on gig economy and tech customers. It competes with Accurate on turnaround time, developer experience, and transparent SMB pricing, representing the tech-native threat to traditional screening incumbents.
• First Advantage: First Advantage is a publicly traded global background screening company offering employment, tenant, and supply-chain screening. It competes head-to-head with Accurate in enterprise and SMB background checks and has a comparable international footprint.
• HireRight: HireRight is a global background screening provider serving enterprise and mid-market customers across regulated industries. It directly competes with Accurate in employment screening, ATS integrations, and multi-jurisdiction compliance capabilities.
• A-Check Global: A-Check Global is a mid-sized background screening provider with ATS integration capabilities and multi-jurisdiction coverage. It competes with Accurate primarily in mid-market and SMB segments with similar per-check pricing models.
• PreCheck: PreCheck is a background screening provider specializing in healthcare and regulated industries. It competes with Accurate specifically in the healthcare vertical (NDIS-style screening, credentialing, ongoing monitoring).
• Sterling Check Corp: Sterling is one of the largest US-based background screening providers offering pre-employment, identity, and monitoring services. It is the most direct large-scale competitor to Accurate, recently valued at $2.2B in its 2024 sale, with overlapping enterprise customer base and similar FCRA-compliant product suite.

Broad incumbents

• Pinkerton (Corporate Investigations): Pinkerton is a global security and investigations firm that offers corporate background screening and due diligence as part of a broader risk-management portfolio. It competes with Accurate in pre-employment and executive screening while serving larger enterprise security buyers.

Emerging players

• Certn: Certn is an emerging global background screening platform with developer-friendly API and AI-driven screening workflows. It represents the next-generation API-first competitor targeting mid-market employers globally.
• GoodHire: GoodHire is a Checkr-owned background screening service focused on small businesses and HR teams. It targets the SMB segment where Accurate's opaque pricing and enterprise GTM are weakest.

Regional players

• Veremark: Veremark is a background screening provider focused on EMEA and APAC markets. It is comparable as a regional competitor in the UK and Australia where Accurate competes via its Vero Screening and VerifyNow subsidiaries.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat7 records

Key risks5 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

• Xx.com/accuratebg
• YouTubeyoutube.com/@accuratebackground6512
• Facebookfacebook.com/AccurateBackground
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/accurate-background

Compliance6 records

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles7 records

Subsidiaries3 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds2 records

Investors1 record

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A4 records

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about Accurate Background