There’s no getting around having a DBS check when you are applying for certain professions. The list of jobs and situations in which applicants need a DBS is set down in law by the government, and so employers are not free to decide who has a DBS check and who doesn’t. A DBS check looks into your criminal record, and lists convictions and cautions which are on the Police computer. There are three levels of DBS checks which get progressively more detailed, with the most in-depth checks being carried out on people who are going to be working with children or vulnerable adults. There could be lots of sensitive information on your DBS certificate, which you might not want to be public knowledge among your colleagues and the management within your organisation.
Legislation Is On Your Side
The good news when it comes to keeping your sensitive information safe is that the law is on your side. Data Protection rules have been replaced by the even stricter GDPR, which requires that your employer keeps paperwork locked away in a filing cabinet, or if it’s held on the computer to use a system of passwords and restricting who gets to access employee records. Employers have to take this legislation seriously as there are very high fines for any company which breaks the laws. There’s been so much publicity about the changes that companies can’t fail to have realised that they need to smarten up their act.
Need to Know
When it comes to the GDPR legislation, the main aim is to restrict access to the information to only the people who need to know to carry out their work. Obviously, this group of people will vary according to the company and the size of the recruitment team. In large organisations, there might be many people who can access your DBS information, but in the other hand, a very large organisation will be more impersonal and you’re unlikely to come across these people on a daily basis. There should be a policy about who accesses DBS and recruitment so don’t be afraid to ask to see it.
DBS Update
If you’re in the type of occupation where you move around a lot between employers, then it can be frustrating having to go back to DBS to apply again, and wait for the certificate to be issued before you can start work. It’s worth using the DBS update service if this all sounds very familiar. DBS service does cost a bit more than a single DBS application, but allows you to log into your account online and see your information, which is updated automatically if anything new comes to light. The other main benefit is that you can give your login details to an employer, who can then immediately log into your account and confirm what’s listed on your DBS record. You’ll get notification of who has accessed your account and when, allowing you to confirm just who has logged in to check your details.
