Before you start
Have a few things ready — they make the difference between same-day and multi-day setup:
- Your business details — legal company name and a work email. Information Direct furnishes consumer reports under the FCRA, so accounts are tied to a business with a permissible purpose.
- An authorized signer — the person who can accept the ordering and compliance terms on the company's behalf, plus their title.
- Your screening needs — roughly which package fits, expected volume, and the states/jurisdictions you hire in.
- Billing contact — who receives invoices, if different from you, and your preferred payment method.
Step 1: Open the intake form
Go to informationdirect.us/signup. This is the order-intake and account-request form. It takes about five minutes and is protected against spam, so there's nothing to install or verify by phone.
Step 2: Your details and password
Enter your name, work email, company, and an optional phone number, then set a password. The password has a strength requirement — use something long and unique. This email and password become your sign-in for the portal once your account is approved.
Step 3: Choose a package path
Pick the package that's closest to what you need — you're not locked in, and packages are fully customizable later. If none fit exactly, choose the custom-compliance path and tell us about your policy, states, and volume in the notes. You can also note expected candidate volume and the jurisdictions you hire in so we can pre-configure the right searches.
Step 4: Billing
By default, billing uses your details as the requester. If invoices should go to someone else — an AP contact or a parent company — uncheck "same as requester" and add the billing contact name and email (both required in that case), plus address and any PO number. Choose a payment preference: invoice, ACH, credit card, or prepaid.
Step 5: The FCRA authorization (the important part)
Before you can be set up, an authorized representative accepts the ordering and compliance terms. By accepting, you're confirming the obligations every employer using consumer reports takes on under federal law:
- Standalone disclosure — candidates receive a clear, standalone notice that a background check may be run.
- Applicant authorization — you obtain the candidate's written permission before screening.
- Adverse action — if a report could lead to not hiring, you follow the FCRA's pre-adverse and adverse action steps.
- EEO compliance — screening is applied consistently and lawfully.
Finish by entering the signer's name, title, and date. This signature is recorded with a version stamp and timestamp for your audit trail. If anything here is unfamiliar, that's normal — email moses@informationdirect.us and we'll walk through it before you sign.
Step 6: Submit
When you submit, three things happen automatically: your account request is created, you receive a confirmation email, and our team is notified to begin setup. Your password is stored securely (hashed), and the sensitive parts of your intake are handled under our standard data protections.
What happens next: credentialing
Account creation is the request — credentialing is the approval. Our team verifies your business and confirms a permissible purpose for the products you've asked for. Employment screening is almost always approved quickly; credit reports or other sensitive products may get a closer look. This typically completes within one business day. If we need anything else, we email your primary contact.
Once you're approved, you'll get a welcome email with portal access. From there, see Signing in and then Creating an order to run your first check.
A note on "fast-start" accounts
If you need to move before full credentialing finishes, ask your account manager about a fast-start setup. Orders can be taken right away through the dashboard's built-in compliance check, while full credentialing completes in the background — reports are released once both are in place. This keeps you moving without skipping the step that protects you.