Note: This is currently only available for customers in the U.S., conducting background checks on U.S. hires.

You can run background checks on prospective employees directly from Vanta through our tool, which Certn, a leading provider of background checks, powers. We recommend this tool for customers who want a simple, sane background check option that keeps their personnel compliant and secure. After you create a Certn account within Vanta, Vanta will have full access to the account. You can remove Vanta’s access by reaching out to support@certn.co.

Set up your Certn Account

• From the People page, select Groups 
  • Tasklists are created, and edited on a group-by-group basis
  • Select the group you would like to leverage Certn with
• Choose Add from the background checks option

• Select Purchase from the Certn banner 

• Follow the steps provided, and add the relevant information to create your Certn account.
  • Do not use an email associated with an existing Certn account

• After clicking Create and integrate account, your Certn account will be created and connected with Vanta.

Start a Background Check

• From the Background Checks Page, click Start a new background check
• Input the name and email of the person you are running the background check on
• Select the background check you’d like to run and review the cost.
  • Note that background checks can include delayed passthrough fees, which will be charged to the credit card on file in addition to the base cost. Learn more
• Input credit card information and purchase the background check

View Results

Once you initiate a background check, its status will be shown on the Background Checks Page. Each background check can have one of the following statuses:

• In progress: The background check still needs to be filled out by the applicant or it is being processed
• Cleared: The background check was completed with no flags
• Needs review: The background check flagged results that need manual review

Get access to your Certn account

To get access to your Certn account, go to https://vanta.certn.co/login and click “Forgot your password?” to reset your password.

FAQS

Which background check should I purchase?

• Any of the background checks offered will fulfill your compliance requirements. Vanta recommends the US Unlimited County Criminal Check as it is the most comprehensive.

What happens after I initiate a background check?

• After the background check is initiated, the applicant will receive an email from Certn to fill out their application. Learn more
• Once the applicant completes the background check application, Certn will process the check. Depending on the county, this can take up to 7 days

How do I manually review the full results of a background check?

To review the full PDF results of a background check, you’ll need to log into your Certn account:

• Find the relevant background check on the Background Checks Page and click View report
• You’ll be redirected to the Certn platform and must log in to see the total result PDF. If you haven’t logged into your Certn account before, you’ll need to get access to the account

How does Vanta’s pricing compare to other tools?

• Through our partnership with Certn, Vanta offers highly competitive pricing relative to other providers. Log into your Vanta account to see the most recent pricing

What are passthrough fees?

• Pass-through access fees are incurred for accessing government and private databases essential for background checks. These include U.S. state and county court fees for retrieving criminal records. These fees are passed through to you at cost, reflecting the amount imposed by the relevant database for their services. You are responsible for paying fees that are incurred for a background check. These charges are not reflected in the upfront cost, as they vary depending on the counties where the applicant resides. The cost of the fees will be charged to the credit card used for the original purpose. The full list of passthrough fees can be viewed here.

What happens if the applicant doesn’t fill out the background check?

• The check will expire if the applicant doesn’t complete the application within 2 weeks. Vanta currently doesn’t offer refunds for expired checks