OLD ORCHARD BEACH, Maine (AP) — Some U.S. businesses verify applicants' eligibility to work using an online government system called E-Verify. When individuals present their documents showing they're authorized to work, employers can check the validity of that information by using the free tool to compare it with records available to the U.S. Department of Homeland Security and the Social Security Administration.

A Homeland Security official has accused authorities in Old Orchard Beach, Maine, of “reckless reliance” on the program after a Jamaica national working as a police officer there was arrested by immigration authorities even though he'd been vetted through E-Verify when he was hired.

But experts say there are few other options for validating information on work eligibility.

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