Instant Checkmate Review: Can It Identify Scammers?

I’ll be honest, I’ve always been a bit hesitant towards trying background checking services, such as Instant Checkmate. I’m sure I’m not alone in this; it seems a little too good to be true.

Despite this, I’ve been very impressed with my experience so far; once I finished the sign-up process and gained access to the services, I was blown away. 

Instant Checkmate is a background checking service that pulls public data, such as court records, addresses, and relatives, and compiles them into a streamlined, organized report. 

They’ve been an authority site for several years and make it somewhat easy to start the process, excluding a few negatives that will be covered shortly. 

My favorite part is the relative section, I’ve discovered a few relatives that I’ve never had the chance to meet, and now I have their address, number, and email, to name a few. 

This review is 100% unbiased, from a regular everyday individual who aspired to see if these services are truly worth it. Spoiler, they are; let’s dive into the review!


How To Use Instant Checkmate: Step by Step Process

Step 1 – Search & Sign Up

Step 1 involves searching for the person, creating an account, and paying for the service to open and view the background report.

To start, head over to Instant Checkmate; you’ll notice a section where you can place the person’s name, age, city, and state in question. 

All of the information fields do not have to be filled in. However, the more information provided, the more precise the results are. 

Step 2 – Locating & Viewing The Report

Once you’ve searched for the person, paid the inexpensive fee, and now see the result of the people closely matching the inputted information, it’s time to narrow it down to your target.

The search results are effortless, as each result has the name, age, address, relatives, and other useful information visible on the results list before even opening the full report.

To open and view the full report, simply scroll down until you find the person you’re looking for and click view report. This will take you to the main report allowing you to access all of the data.

Step 3 – Understanding The Report

Understanding the report is easy if you know what to look for. The primary report page has each section listed on the page’s left-hand side, such as criminal records, finances, assets, etc.

To view each of them, simply click the section or scroll down; all of them are integrated on a single page, so both work great.

A few sections, such as criminal records, can “expand” to further detail the crime committed. In reality, it’s all incredibly straightforward; you’ll get the hang of it quickly.


Instant Checkmate Review – How it Works

Presents Relatives 

Instant checkmate can help to identify scams by utilizing the relative feature. This is one of the first sections you’ll see after opening the background report for that person. 

In short, you will see the relatives of the person you are searching for, with the ability to view their report as well. This feature, in most cases, is accurate. 

However, a few times, a “relative” showed up that was not related to me or others I searched for. 

This was a rare occurrence, though, and only occurred twice out of hundreds of results throughout several different searches. 

This feature helps identify scammers because it allows you to ask the person in question, such as “Do you have any relatives, like a sister?” 

If there are no results of said brother or sister in the background check, then it’s time to dig a little deeper.

Previous & Current Addresses

This feature can be beneficial at preventing any ugly occurrences, such as scams, or worse. 

After you open the report for the person, you can view their addresses, including current and previous addresses. 

This can be useful by asking where they live and looking at the results. If none of them closely match what you’re being told, then it’s probably worth looking into a little more. 

However, the address feature isn’t perfect. It left out two of my previous addresses for starters, but this, again, was a rare occurrence across several searches. 

Furthermore, It displays a map of the results and any neighbors near that address, which can be useful depending on your needs.

Criminal Records

This is more than likely the most useful part for those seeking to stay safe on dates. Sure, a clean record doesn’t completely rule out dangers, but it’s a start. 

Instant Checkmate pulls public criminal record information, which is very specific, I’ll add. It displays detailed tickets, warrants, and criminal backgrounds, such as criminal charges. 

This can help you avoid going on a date with someone who’s had a violent past or someone who simply cannot stay out of trouble. 

Keep in mind, some criminal records will not show up, as they may have been removed from the public database due to certain restrictions for personal security, or perhaps the crime was expunged.

Nevertheless, this feature can be beneficial for many reasons, such as validating claims or assuring that a person isn’t crazed.

Individual Finances

Instant Checkmate can also gather various types of information related to finances, such as liens, bankruptcies, judgments, and other details. 

I found this feature to be a little jaw-dropping, to say the least. The amount of information in regards to the results is astounding. 

I’m surprised that some of the information is public by law. As mentioned previously, for leans, it shows the co-signers, plus, loan amount, and loan company.

Moreover, if a lawsuit was initiated concerning finances, the lawyer who handled the case is included by name, including any other person(s) affected by the lawsuit. 

There is also a section for UCC filings, but this area is rarely filled with information, understandably so, as they’re less common occurrences.

Personal Assets

This is quite the feature, as it includes incredibly detailed information regarding assets, but more particularly in terms of housing. 

This feature helps confirm an individual’s claims, such as “I have a beach house out in Orange Beach.”

If this is true, it should show up. The accuracy was quite good in my experience, with no details incorrect or missing except a few places I had rented short term. 

It can also entail other assets such as businesses, but this proved to be wildly inaccurate. 

In most cases, it completely omitted the business, which is likely due to the business being linked to several different names and/or organizations.

Sex Offender List

Instant Checkmate can pull criminal records related to sex offenses, and it does an outstanding job at doing it, too. 

Abruptly after running the check near my home, I was astounded by just how many were registered sex offenders. 

In fact, I noticed a seemingly perfect, higher-end apartment that I’d thought of renting last year was full of sex offenders, over 20, to be exact. 

This feature can prove very useful to just about anyone but is especially useful for those looking to go out on dates. The last thing you need is to savor a margarita with a sex offender.

It also shows a map that can be zoomed in and out, along with the photo of each sex offender and the specific offense they were charged with in court.


Why Background Checks Are Important 

Keeps You Safe

I’ve always been nervous for people who arrive on the first date; you never know who you’re meeting. Sure, the chances of meeting a crazed man or woman are low, but it’s not impossible. 

Instant checkmate not only allows you to confirm the name to see if it’s legit or fake, but it also allows you to check out their background. 

If you’re told that his name is “John Doe,” yet after searching, nothing pops up, you know to be careful. You may also find that your date has warrants or has committed very unfavorable crimes. 

It’s a simple, quick search that really can keep you safe before meeting anyone in person. It’s not a certainty, but it lowers the chances of anything bad happening substantially, in my opinion.

Helps Avoid Scammers

Online dating scams have been running rampant for years. You’d be surprised at the length some of them go to just to get a dollar. Luckily, Instant Checkmate can help here, too. 

Many dating scammers will claim either a real but stolen name or make one up. Instant Checkmate gives you the ability to see if their claims are true. 

Instant Checkmate can help significantly, but it’s not entirely a bulletproof way to determine a scammer from a legit, honest person. 

A few quirks need to be fixed, but it’s still a great way to determine it; the problems are minuscule compared to the good.

Saves You Time

I’ll be the first to say that you shouldn’t judge someone at first glance over some financial issues, such as evictions, bankruptcies, or other negative credit-related matters.

However, it’s still an important question that is awkward to ask, “What do your finances look like”? Yea, that’s not something I’m going to ask, nor do I think anyone else wants to ask, either. 

This is where Instant Checkmate comes in and saves the day. The service provides a fairly in-depth look at major financial stats, such as bankruptcy, liens, and evictions.

If any of these is a deal-breaker for you, Instant Checkmate can save you both time and heartbreak over a potential financial mess. 


FAQs about Instant Checkmate

Does Instant Checkmate notify the person?

Instant Checkmate will never notify any person you search for. They understand the concept of privacy and that frequently, alerting individuals may result in adverse effects.

In fact, it’s included right in their terms of service. 

You can search for anyone you’d like, all while staying completely anonymous, keeping your identity safe. Plus, you can request that your info be removed as well.

What information does Instant Checkmate provide?

There are several types of information provided by Instant Checkmate. You can look at their criminal background, assets, financial history, and previous address, for starters.

You also have the opportunity to view their relative’s full background report.

This can help prove or disprove a particular claim made by an online individual that you suspect may be a scammer. 

Why does Instant Checkmate have my information?

All of the data provided by Instant Checkmate is public information, meaning it’s available to everyone either online or through contacting certain places.

However, most of this is very challenging to acquire; hence Instant Checkmate providing their services.

Your data is public, too, just like everyone else, including mine. Despite this, you can request that this data be removed at any point by contacting them.


Verdict: Is Instant Checkmate worth it?

There are several background checking services out there that claim to be able to pull just about any information you’d ever imagine, including Instant Checkmate. 

The element that makes Instant Checkmate stand out, though, is that their claim is actually valid! I found nothing left out in terms of what they told me they could do, generally.

The only negative is that some of the information is inaccurate. Luckily, they provide an option to report inaccurate data. 

Overall, Instant Checkmate is worth it, especially if you have reasons to use it, such as finding lost friends or relatives, avoiding scammers, etc.

Instant Checkmate is an easy, straightforward way to complete a full background check on virtually anyone; click here to get started.



bryan rucker writer for romancescams
Written by Bryan Rucker

Brian Rucker writes about all things related to online dating and lifestyle. He has written hundreds of articles, specializing in online dating scams, and has written other fun and exciting topics in the online dating space. Read more of Bryan's articles.

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