Your Employment Data Might Be Shared — and You May Not Know It

Across the U.S., many employers allow employment and payroll data to be shared…

Across the U.S., many employers allow employment and payroll data to be shared with third-party services that verify your work history or income — often for mortgage lenders, landlords, background checks, or even debt collectors.

These services are typically used to confirm whether someone works (or worked) somewhere. But here’s what most people don’t realize:

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What’s Really Going On?

Your data is likely being shared — and you may not know it.

Most people aren’t notified or asked for approval on the day their data is released. You may have signed a form days, weeks, or months ago — or applied for several jobs, apartments, or had debts in collection — and not remember it. But you aren’t given a chance to say, “I changed my mind” or “Don’t release my data.”

Some employers don’t even realize it’s happening.

Payroll or HR software vendors may have set up the data sharing integration in the background, often as part of a broader service agreement.

In some cases, payroll companies — and sometimes employers — receive a share of the revenue.

In some cases, they do not. But when they do, it can mean hundreds of thousands — even millions — of dollars per year for large organizations.

You aren’t notified when your data is accessed — and unless you know where to look, you may never know it happened.

You can read the FCRA’s official guidance on ‘permissible purpose’ here.

See the NBC News investigation on employment data sharing 👇


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What’s in my report?

Want to See What's Already in One of Your Files?

There are many players in the employment verification industry, and until now, there hasn’t been a central place for employees to check across all systems. Our goal is to change that.

The largest player in this industry is a service called The Work Number, operated by Equifax. According to their website, over 4.4 million employers have participated in their system.

That includes government agencies, school districts, hospitals, Fortune 500 companies, and small businesses.

Check Current/Former Employers

You can look up your current or former employer to see if they participate — at least with the largest verification company, The Work Number. Search Employers ->

Request a Copy of Your Data

You can also request a free copy of your employment data file under your rights in the Fair Credit Reporting Act: Request Your Report ->

We’ll walk you through this and more in the full guide, but you can get started right here.

Take Action

Ready to Be Heard?

There’s a better way — and you have a right to know what’s being shared about you. We created this page to help you:

Learn what’s happening and why

Look up whether your employer participates

(at least with the largest verification company)

Request your own employment data file

Share MyEmployment with your employer and encourage change

For Employers: https://www.myemployment.com/employers/

You don’t need to download anything.
Just scroll, click, and decide what to do next.

Legal and Transparency Notice:

This page and the linked materials are provided for educational and informational purposes only. We are not offering legal advice or alleging wrongdoing by any company, system, or employer. Employment and income verification services — including those operated by Equifax and others — function within applicable U.S. laws, including the Fair Credit Reporting Act (FCRA). Our goal is simple: to help individuals understand how their employment data is handled — and how to take back control.