Check birth records against information you've been given by applicants if you're a prospective employer. This is a time-honored way for employers to determine if potential employees are being honest. All too often, employers find themselves hiring people under a false name, a false age, with a criminal record - all of which can spell big trouble for the employer.

The way to check birth records is to compare the vital information given on the application with the birth records at the vital records office of the county or parish in which that person was supposedly born. This does not entitle you to a copy of that person's birth documents. It simply means you can have the information revealed to you, solely for the purposes of your business.

Check Birth Records Against Fraud

In these days of identity theft and fraud, it's more important than ever to check birth records. Yet it's also important to keep these records secure from those who would use them for harmful purposes. For example, it's now well known that one of the 9-11 hijackers obtained a passport using birth information of a U.S. citizen.

Thus it's always a balancing act for vital records offices. They must preserve a person's right to privacy. Yet they must also allow this information to be checked periodically in the interest of crime prevention. This is why birth records can be viewed as a double-edged sword.