DateCheck phone app gets the 411 on suitors

Back in the day, a single man or woman would meet someone intriguing, collect his or her phone number, then head home to pump friends, family and colleagues for information.

Do you know this guy? Is she seeing anyone? Is he nice? Does she make a decent living?

Today, a new mobile phone program called DateCheck has streamlined that process. Instead of surveying friends and family for information, singles can plug in a name, phone number or e-mail address and plumb a slew of public databases to find out if Mr. or Ms. Seemingly Wonderful is married, a convicted felon or worse, a weekend clog dancer.

And they can do it while the person of interest is, say, ordering a drink at the bar or visiting the loo.

“In the time it takes to redo your lip gloss, you can check all this stuff out,” DateCheck’s promotional video touts. “It’s like having a private investigator right in your purse.”

Digging up dirt on a date is nothing new, of course.

“There are two kinds of people — those who Google their dates and those who lie about it,” said Dan Nainan, a 28-year-old professional comedian from Manhattan, who said he’s used the Web to find out if dates had criminal convictions or were lying about their age. “Who wouldn’t Google someone if they were going to go out or do business with them?”

Background checks, through a private detective or online services such as USSearch.com, RecordsRegistry.com, eFindOuttheTruth.com, DateSmart.com or DateDetectives.com (which partners with Intelius, the company that came up with the DateCheck app), have become more prevalent, especially as friendly fix-ups have given way to stranger dating through online dating sites.

“There was a time when people thought it was rather unromantic, when they looked down on checking someone out, but in the past five years, investigating a date has definitely become more acceptable,” said Vicki Siedow, a Los Angeles private investigator. “I just did one this weekend for a client who checks out everyone. Even before she meets a guy for coffee, she has me do a background check on him.”

Intelius DateCheck, now available for phones using the Android operating system, uses public records to sort and provide information on potential paramours.

John Arnold, co-founder and executive vice president of business development at Intelius, said the number of singles using the company’s online investigative services to check out dates was one of the reasons Intelius decided to create the DateCheck phone app.

The program is still under review by Apple for its iPhone and Research In Motion (maker of BlackBerrys), but is available for Android phones such as the Google G1 and myTouch, as well as Motorola’s new Cliq.

“We run periodic surveys of our customers and one of our larger responses was in the dating space,” he said. “It seemed an appropriate direction to go when we kicked off our flagship mobile app.”

Intelius’ information comes from public records and publicly available sources such as departments of corrections, courts, sex offender registries, property deed and tax assessor records, with DateCheck’s “dirt” divvied into five specific areas.

The “Sleaze Detector” checks for criminal convictions, sex offenses and other red-flag raising issues while “$$$$” looks up property ownership information (including assessed property values).

Other features delve farther: “Compatibility” gives users a birth date and offers astrological insights; “Interests” gleans employment, education and social networking data; and “Living Situation” finds out who, exactly, the person is sharing his or her home with (a wife? a boyfriend? his mother?) by tapping property — and other — public records.

Some data is free, but the juicy stuff (specifics on criminal convictions, lists of aliases, bankruptcy records) requires a fee — anywhere from $1.95 to find out the names and ages of the people sharing a potential love interest’s home (information on children under 18 is not provided) to $39.95 for a full background check.

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