Please do not call your Background Investigator to ask about the status of your case. Once we complete our assigned task (interview, record, references, etc.) it leaves our queue and we move on to the next case (and we have many!). We do field work only and we do not adjudicate or make decisions regarding your case. Please contact your FSO/employer for updates.
I like those calls and have to tell Subject that I have no idea who they are. Unless of course their case was a giant pay in the rear, then I might recall them.
@Skybox can’t agree more. It’s not the job of BIs to know about your case. BIs are there for a short time in the grandeur of the clearance process. You only hear from your BI when he/she wants to interview you,and thing of that nature. Once he/she is done with your case, it’s forwarded, and you never hear again from him/her. So the same should be from our side, BIs should never hear from us.
I’ve been getting too many calls lately, asking for a status update on cases. Figured I’d post something about it. (Also, please don’t reach out to let us know you got cleared…)
Very true as the BI’s job is only to gather facts, not adjudicate.
I was about to say that too. For some the wait might be too long and when they do get their clearance, in the excitement, they might think of calling the BI and let him/her know. But you have to think, the BI doesn’t want to/need to know about your clearance. It is a lengthy process with so many steps. the BI was the 2nd step of the process. You don’t need to go back to step 2 and call. Just plan ahead for your next steps and how you gonna use your newly acquired clearance.
The issue too, which many don’t realize, is that any shared communication (text, voice mails) outside of the investigation is a potential for exposure of Personally Identifiable Information (PII), which has to be reported on our end when it occurs. It’s not that I don’t want to hear from folks (I am happy for all success stories!), it’s just that I dread getting text messages/voice mails and wondering whether there is going to be a potential leak I will have to report.