Why does someone else show on my applicant’s social security number trace report?

This is normally caused by one of a few things. First, remember that the information is derived from a person’s credit report. Therefore, if an applicant has joint credit or has co-signed with another individual, this would create a joint account on the file and would cause the other person to show on your applicant’s report. This normally is not a concern when performing a background search.

Second, if the other person’s social security number is similar to your applicant’s, it might simply be a typographical error in the credit bureau files. When the credit bureau was inputting the second person’s information, a typo was made, erroneously matching your subject’s social security number and making that person show up on your applicant’s report.

Third, if a second person is using your applicant’s social security number fraudulently, that would cause the secondary person to show up as well. In both scenario 2 and 3, it is most important to rule out that this is not an alias for your applicant. Typically, if the first name is different or the address does not match an entry that is linked to your subject, we can be relatively sure it is not an alias. Again, this probably is not a major concern from a background check prospective; however, it might be advisable to let the applicant know about the discrepancy that was found. TruDiligence would recommend that the applicant contact the credit bureau to have the erroneous information investigated and removed from his or her report.