The National Instant Criminal Background Check System (NICS)

For years, our clients at InstantCriminalChecks.com have relied upon us for up-to-date information about the industry and reliable national instant criminal check reports. We believe that our clients benefit from additional knowledge about the industry, which is why we recently released an information sheet about the FBI National Instant Criminal Background Check System (NICS).

The National Instant Criminal Background Check System is a federal service that is provided by the FBI. The goal of this program is to reduce the number of gun-related incidents in the United States by preventing unqualified buyers from purchasing firearms. The NICS is a point-of-sale background check that is performed at federally-licensed firearms dealers. Private gun sales are not monitored by the NICS, unless it is mandated by the state law.

People who are interested in purchasing firearms will have their information submitted through the National Instant Criminal Background Check System at the time they are looking to purchase the item. The clerk at the federally-licensed dealer will contact the system by way of the phone or the computer, and at that point the information is submitted electronically into the e-check system. In a matter of moments, the buyer will know whether or not they are qualified to purchase the firearm that they desire. Since the program was put into place in 1998, more than 100 million checks have been performed. Of those, nearly 700,000 people were denied the chance to purchase a firearm based on information found on their NICS background check.

The Brady Handgun Violence Prevention Act of 1993 was signed into law by United States President Bill Clinton. The act went into effect in February 1994, and was named after James Brady, the man who was shot by John Hinckley, Jr. when he attempted to assassinate President Ronald Reagan in March of 1981. The goal of the Brady Act was to institute a federal background check system for people who were interested in purchasing firearms in the United States. This act ultimately produced the National Instant Criminal Background Check System.

We at InstantCriminalChecks.com have found that those who are interested in our industry — specifically our clients — benefit from additional information about background check services and our free background check resources. While we do not offer NICS services, we do offer accurate national instant criminal check reports. For more information, contact our company representatives today.

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