There are several services in the U.S. that purchase these public record data and then provide it for users online. These services are usually aimed at people finding their long lost friends or relative. The same information is also offered to people in the form of free background check too, by adding a little more information. These records may cover the property records, marriage records, phone numbers and all previous records of a person. More critical information pertaining to a person's criminal records and credit reports comes for a fee.
The federal and local governments have the original records in their databases, and they offer access to this information free of charge, although there are some states like California, who have strict restrictions due to privacy reasons.
There are several government records sites online that you can check out where free background check are allowed and since these sites belong to the government, you can rest assured the information being provided is truly accurate and up-to-date; however beware of all those websites that claim to be a government website to cheat people.