A Private Investigator Should Ask When Surveilling a New Location

Private Investigator Industry News

We’re always looking for ways to help PIs stay on the right side of the law and avoid any issues that come with accidentally breaking laws. That could mean failing to solve a case, rendering evidence useless in court – or even opening your PI business to large lawsuits.

One of the trickier situations is when an investigator is first visiting a new area with plans to look for evidence. In these cases, PIs may be looking to document a subject in the act of a crime, or when breaking a contract. They could also be looking to collect physical evidence at the location. To help avoid any liability issues from breaking laws, here are several questions PIs should always ask when first arriving.

Where Are the Boundaries of the Property?

Private investigators have a lot of freedom in public spaces, like streets and public sidewalks. This is where legal surveillance can take place, so it’s always good to look at nearby public spots with good vantage points for watching people, taking photos, and other activities. Note where public spaces end – you may even want to pull up a map app or consult online information about property lines if necessary. Crossing over into public property is considered trespassing for PIs, who don’t have any legal authority to do it.

Do I Need to Ask Permission for What I’m About to Do?

PIs do have one powerful tool when going on private property – the ability to ask permission. If the owner gives express permission to the PI, they’re no longer in legal trouble. This is also true of anything at the location that the PI may want to take a closer look at, like a personal computer: If they get permission from the owner, they are in the clear.

Keep in mind, PIs can’t impersonate authority figures to get permission to be on a private property. They can’t pretend to be police officers, for example. It’s legally dicey to trick a current owner by other means, too, so be careful what you say. When possible, such as with a domestic case, PIs should ask the person who hired them if they can grant permission to go on private property. Keep this in mind for companies hiring PIs to investigate commercial properties, too.

Where Are the Trash Cans Located?

This may seem like an odd question at first, but it’s a common part of many cases, PIs regularly look in trash for thrown-away documents, receipts, letters, and much more. That’s why many PIs eye trash locations when first investigating a new place. If that kind of evidence is on your list, make sure that trash is located in a public space before you go dumpster diving. Just because it’s in the trash, doesn’t always mean it’s fair game.

Where Is Privacy Expected?

This is a vital question for PIs that plan on taking photos or video to collect evidence. They may be looking for signs that an employee isn’t fulfilling their duties while remote working, for example, or seeking evidence of an affair. Laws about this kind of surveillance typically depend on a concept called expectation of privacy. If a person, especially on their own property, has an expectation of privacy in a specific place, that makes it illegal to snap photos or video of them. That includes obvious places like bathrooms, as well as bedrooms spotted through home windows. Depending on the circumstances, it may also apply to backyards and gardens.

When possible, PIs should document people entering and leaving homes, which is generally allowed, and gather evidence of what people do in public places.

Where Are Alternative Vantage Points?

If a PI is planning on long-term surveillance of a property, it’s good to look around and find a few different spots where surveillance will work – both in and outside of a vehicle, if necessary. Generally, PIs don’t want to park their vehicle in the same spot every day over the course of several days. This may attract a lot of unwanted attention. When possible, find a couple of different vantage points to switch between. Some PIs also have the ability to switch between vehicles to avoid suspicion, which could be helpful, too.

How Do I Get Out Carefully and Smoothly?

Keep an eye on streets and turns that will allow you to easily drive out of an area if necessary. PIs often want the ability to quickly tail someone leaving a home or move away to avoid suspicion – and they want to do it without attracting too much attention. It’s always a good idea to review maps of the area, but when first arriving make note of the most practical ways to drive away, make a quick turn out of a neighborhood, and so on.

The Right Surveillance Techniques

With a little preparation beforehand, it’s easy to avoid accidentally breaking laws and ruining investigations. The right surveillance techniques will help you gather evidence like photos and documents without getting into any trouble. Keep these questions in mind, and it will soon become second nature. If you have any questions about the specific laws in your area or how courts tend to view specific actions, don’t hesitate to arrange a consultation with a local attorney who specializes in criminal law.

Posted on December 1, 2022
Private Investigator Industry News

El Dorado Insurance Agency, INC.

What’s a Pig Butchering Scam? Here’s How to Avoid Falling Victim to One.

Thousands have lost huge sums after being lured into fraudulent online investment schemes by seemingly attractive strangers who strike up online conversations with them. Here’s a guide to spotting the telltale signs.

If you’re like most people, you’ve received a text or chat message in recent months from a stranger with an attractive profile photograph. It might open with a simple “Hi” or what seems like good-natured confusion about why your phone number seems to be in the person’s address book. But these messages are often far from accidental: They’re the first step in a process intended to steer you from a friendly chat to an online investment to, ultimately, watching your money disappear into the account of a fraudster.

Congress and Industry Leaders Call for Crackdown on Hospice Fraud

“Pig butchering,” as the technique is known — the phrase alludes to the practice of fattening a hog before slaughter — originated in China, then went global during the pandemic. Today criminal syndicates target people around the world, often by forcing human trafficking victims in Southeast Asia to perpetrate the schemes against their will. ProPublica recently published an in-depth investigation of pig butchering, based on months of interviews with dozens of scam victims, former scam sweatshop workers, advocates, rescue workers, law enforcement and investigators, along with extensive documentary evidence including training manuals for scammers, chat transcripts between scammers and their targets and complaints filed with the Federal Trade Commission.

“We’ve had people from all walks of life that have been victimized in these cases and the paydays have been huge,” said Andrew Frey, a financial investigator for the Secret Service, the federal agency that is taking a lead role in combating online crime and trying to help victims recover their stolen funds.

These swindles are not only highly organized but also systematized. Here’s how the fraudsters typically go about it, including photographs, excerpts from text exchanges between scammers and targets, advice from training guides for fraudsters and police reports from pig butchering cases:

1. Create a fake identity

Pig butchers most often begin by creating a phony online persona, typically accompanied by an alluring photo (which itself might have been stolen) and images that convey a glamorous lifestyle.

This Instagram profile was reported to the Federal Trade Commission by a Florida resident who complained of losing $89,000 to a pig butchering scam. (Meta, which owns Instagram, said it’s investigating the account, whose owner didn’t respond to a request for comment.) 

2. Initiate contact

Once they’ve got an online profile, fraudsters begin sending messages to people on dating or social networking sites. Alternatively, they may use WhatsApp or another messaging service and pretend to have stumbled on a “wrong number” as they contact you. (A spokesperson for Meta, which owns WhatsApp, previously told ProPublica that the company is investing “significant resources” into keeping pig-butchering scammers off its platforms.)

In December 2020, a Connecticut man received these messages on WhatsApp from a seemingly friendly stranger. He responded and eventually ended up getting tricked into two scams that cost him a total of $180,000.

3. Win the trust of the target

The next step is starting a conversation with a potential victim to gain their trust. The scammers often initiate benign chats about life, family and work with an eye toward mining their targets for information about their lives that they can later use to manipulate them. They’ll fabricate details about their own life that make them seem similar to you. After all, people like people who are like them.

When a Houston woman revealed that her brother was born with cerebral palsy, a crook countered with a similar-sounding tale:

4. Sign them up

Before long, the swindlers will pivot to a discussion of investing. They’ll make claims about their own purported investing successes, perhaps sharing screenshots of a brokerage account with gaudy numbers in it. They’ll try to convince targets to open an account at their online brokerage. Unbeknownst to the target, the brokerage is a sham, and any money deposited will go straight to the scammer. Most victims don’t figure out that last part until it’s too late.

5. Get them to put real money into the fake account

Once marks agree to learn investing tricks, the scammers will “help” them with the investment process. The fraudsters will explain how to wire money from their bank account to a crypto wallet and eventually to the fake brokerage. Typically the fraudster will ease the process by recommending a modest initial investment — which will inevitably show a gain.

A woman in Michigan became intrigued by her online boyfriend’s references to making money trading gold and offered to become his student. Two days later, he was teaching her how to get started investing in a fake brokerage accessible through MetaTrader:

6. “Prove” that it’s legitimate

Scammers often allay initial doubts by letting targets withdraw money once or twice to convince them the process is trustworthy. For example, fraudsters allowed a Canadian man named Sajid Ikram to withdraw 33,000 Canadian dollars, according to a statement he filed with the Royal Canadian Mounted Police. That returned money helped convince him that his investment was real. He reported ultimately losing nearly $400,000, including money borrowed from several friends.

7. Manipulate them into investing more

That’s only the beginning. Pig butchering guides offer insights on how to exploit marks’ emotional and financial vulnerabilities to manipulate them into depositing more and more funds. It starts with assurances that the investments are risk-free, then escalates into pressure to take out loans, liquidate retirement savings, even mortgage a house.

Over a period of nine days, one scammer (who called herself Jessica) escalated her pressure, pushing the target, a California man, first to use his cash on hand, then to tap his retirement savings, then to borrow money.

8. Cut them off

Once targets reach a limit and become unwilling to deposit more funds, their seeming investment success comes to a sudden stop. Withdrawals become impossible, or they suffer a big “loss” that wipes out their entire investment.

The California man was aghast when he discovered $440,000 he’d deposited was gone. Ultimately, the swindler persuaded him to invest another $600,000, which also disappeared into the swindler’s account.

Scammers will then turn the screws of manipulation tighter by telling victims there’s a potential solution: If they deposit more cash into the brokerage, they can regain what they lost. Sometimes, the claim is that the investment is successful — but there’s a “tax problem” that requires paying additional funds equal to, say, 20% of their total account value. If the victim pays, the scammer will claim that new obstacles have arisen that require paying new fees.

No matter how much targets pay, it’s never enough, as detailed in the FTC complaint excerpted below, which was filed by a pig butchering victim in Maryland. This person lost almost $1.4 million, in part because the person kept meeting scammers’ demands to pay taxes and various fees to get their money back:

“Once the trading has ended, I applied to withdrawal my money and profit from the website. The broker asked me to pay a tax on the profit of 88,587.90 usd on 8162021, this amount was wired again through Bank of America into a foreign account in Hong Kong. Another request for me to pay security deposit on my profits which was 83,950.00 usd wired out to a different foreign account in Hong Kong once again. The broker asked for a bank and withdrawal processing fee of 27,983.34 usd again was wired out to a different foreign account in Hong Kong. The very last wire was for expediting the withdrawal and the platform asked for 55,966.60 usd wired out to Hong Kong. At this point I already had to much money in the platform so I kept giving in.”

10. Taunt and depart

Once the targets are aware that they’ve been swindled, the fraudsters often insult or taunt them. They soon go silent, and the websites of their phony brokerages stop working. Then they relaunch a new website under a different URL and restart the process with other targets.

After nearly four months of chatting and $30,000 in losses for the Michigan victim, her scammer seemed to revel in unveiling the financial — and emotional — deception:

Ways to avoid holiday scams

• Verify a retail website or person is legitimate
• Use the Better Business Bureau’s website (www.bbb.org) to investigate retailers
• Scrutinize things sold at significantly discounted prices
• Make sure the site you buy from has "https" in the web address, otherwise your personal information is not safe
• Beware of sites that require payment with a gift card.
• Don't give someone your credit card information through unsolicited emails, don't click on links or reply in unsolicited emails
• Routinely monitor your credit card statements
• Verify requests for personal information by contacting them using the information on their website
• Use strong passwords with banking, credit card and rewards accounts, change passwords regularly
• What to do if you're a victim of a scam
• Immediately contact your bank and stop transactions if you discover fraudulent or suspicious activity
• Ask your bank to call the financial institution involved in the suspicious transaction
• Report to the Internet Crime Complaint Center at IC3.gov

How To Become A Private Investigator: Skills, Salary And Job Outlook

Several pathways can lead to a career as a private investigator (PI). Typically, the best candidates have prior professional experience in law enforcement, law or the military, but prospective private investigators can also take other steps to open up and increase job opportunities in the field.

This article outlines how to become a private investigator, including common requirements for education, training, licensure and work experience. We also overview the top skills needed to excel in this role.

What Is a Private Investigator?

Private investigators’ clients include individuals, attorneys, businesses and organizations. Their services can range from gathering and analyzing critical information on personal, financial and legal matters to performing background checks, assisting with searches for missing persons and conducting surveillance.

The daily tasks of a private investigator can vary widely depending on the case. Typical duties may include the following:

• Conducting interviews
• Conducting thorough searches of computer databases, public records and other resources to compile critical information for investigations, missing person cases and other cases
• Performing personal background checks, such as pre-employment checks, to acquire pertinent information regarding an individual’s personal history and financial status
• Gathering and analyzing evidence for clients
• Writing reports or case summaries
• 
  

How to Become a PI

Depending on the jurisdiction and state in which you work, the steps to becoming a private investigator can vary. It’s essential to research state-specific private investigator requirements to determine the best course of action. However, most PIs follow the below below to progress in their careers.

Receive an Education

Each state sets its own requirements for PIs; however, at a minimum, most employers require candidates to have a high school diploma or GED certificate. It’s becoming more common for employers to require applicants to hold an associate or bachelor’s in criminal justice, criminal law, criminology, political science or a similar discipline.

Completing postsecondary education and earning a degree in a relevant field can help expand your job opportunities as a PI.

Complete Training

Working as a PI requires a diverse skill set, so training is an essential part of this profession. Many employers provide on-the-job training. Training requirements can vary depending on the position and your prior professional experience. Training may cover the following:

• Techniques and procedures for conducting interviews
• Strategies for collecting and evaluating evidence
• Accident scene reconstruction methods
• Surveillance techniques

Gain Experience

Gaining relevant hands-on experience can help aspiring private investigators develop the skills needed to perform the day-to-day tasks of this role successfully. Most public investigators have a background or prior professional experience in law, law enforcement or the military.

Enrolling in a criminal justice, criminal law or criminology program can help aspiring PIs gain foundational knowledge and skills for this profession. Some programs offer internship opportunities that allow students to gain hands-on experience.

Earn Licensure

Each state has its own licensure requirements for private investigators. Most states require PIs to obtain licensure, which often entails meeting specific educational and professional work experience criteria and passing an examination.

Consider Certification

While private investigator certifications are not required for this career path, certification can help validate your skill set and knowledge. Below are two professional credential options that private investigators can pursue.

Certified Legal Investigator (CLI)®

The National Associate of Legal Investigations (NALI) offers the Certified Legal Investigator certification. The CLI is a professional board certification that validates private investigators’ knowledge, skills and experiences through rigorous examination, oral ethical testing, statement-taking, role-playing and white paper authorship. To become a CLI, applicants must meet the following requirements:

• Be employed by public defenders’ offices, law firms or privately owned investigative firms.
• Meet your state’s licensure requirement.
• Have at least five years of professional experience working as a legal investigator. Alternatively, applicants can substitute one year of work by completing 90 quarter hours or 60 semester hours at an accredited university or college.
• Submit a white paper on any investigative topic. The paper must be at least 1,000 words. Applicants must submit the white paper at least 30 days before the exam.
• Submit the fee and application no later than 30 days before the exam.
• Agree to earn continuing education credits and submit reports of compliance.

You can visit NALI’s CLI requirement page for the most up-to-date certification requirements.

Professional Certified Investigator (PCI)®

ASIS International offers the Professional Certified Investigator certification, which demonstrates certifiable knowledge and specialized skills in security investigations. These skills include case evaluation and management strategies, the ability to collect valuable information through surveillance, interview techniques and interrogation strategies.

Eligibility requirements for the PCI certification include the following:

• Three to five years of investigations experience (depending on your education level) and two years of case management experience
• Have been employed full time in a security-related position
• Have not been convicted of any criminal offense that would reflect poorly on profession, organization and certification program
• Sign and agree to comply with the ASIS Certification Code of Conduct
• Agree to adhere to the ASIS certification programs’ policies, which can be found in the ASIS International Board Certification Handbook 

You can visit ASIS’ eligibility requirements page for the most up-to-date information regarding PCI certification requirements.

To become certified, you must pass the PCI exam, which consists of 125 scored multiple-choice questions. The exam may also feature 15 randomly distributed, unscored pre-test questions, creating a total of 140 exam questions. Test-takers have 2.5 hours to complete the exam, which covers tasks, skills and knowledge in three primary domains: case management, investigative techniques and procedures and case presentation.

The PCI exam contents outline provides an overview of the specific tasks and areas of knowledge included in the exam.

Top Skills for Private Investigators

Private investigators need a diverse skill set that includes hard and soft skills. Below are just a few essential skills PIs need to fulfill the demands of the role.

Communication

Written and verbal communication is an integral part of private investigative work. PIs must conduct interviews, speak to family members of missing persons, collaborate with police officers and other law enforcement professionals and present their findings in court, which necessitates strong verbal communication skills. It’s critical for PIs to ask concise, straightforward questions and actively listen during these processes.

Not only do PIs need to communicate clearly and effectively, but they must also ensure they’re being considerate and compassionate toward individuals who may be going through difficult situations.

Private investigators are also responsible for documenting investigations, which entails writing and filing detailed case reports.

Patience

Private investigation involves many processes and procedures, requiring consistent effort, persistence and patience. These processes can prolong the duration of an investigation. Although a PI’s instinct may be to solve an assigned case as quickly as possible, it can take time to generate leads, perform surveillance, gather and analyze concrete evidence and solve cases.

Resourcefulness

PIs have access to a wide variety of resources. They must make full use of the information and tools available to them, such as public record databases containing driving records and criminal records, to efficiently solve cases.

Legal Knowledge

It’s essential for private detectives to have a strong foundational knowledge of local, state and federal law. Since private investigators are not considered law enforcement, it’s critical to understand the applicable legal parameters and constraints to ensure you’re not infringing on criminal or privacy laws. If evidence is collected unlawfully, a court can reject it, and it can even be prosecuted.

Computer Literacy

Private investigators use computers, surveillance equipment, GPS trackers and other technology in their day-to-day operations. Often, PIs must navigate through data banks and databases to collect pertinent information and evidence.

Private Investigator Salary and Job Outlook

The U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) reports that private investigators’ median salary is $59,380 per year. The BLS projects employment opportunities for private detectives and investigators to grow 6% from 2021 to 2031.

Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs) About How to Become a Private Investigator

Can you make a lot of money as a private investigator?

The BLS reports the median annual salary for private investigators as $59,380. Many PIs are self-employed, which allows them to negotiate their pay rates with their clients. Several factors can impact salary, including location, level of education, certifications and professional work experience.

How long does it take to become a private investigator in California?

At a minimum, it can take between two and four years to become a private investigator in California. This timeline includes the three years of compensated work experience required to qualify for California’s private investigator license or the time it takes to earn a law degree or bachelor’s in political science.

By Michelle Jones 

Forbes Advisor

BBB: Don’t get bitten by online ‘puppy scams.'

Davis Enterprise 

        


























































































BYLAUREN KEENE

DECEMBER 9, 2022

With the holiday season underway, the Better Business Bureau issued a recent warning about “puppy scams,” which historically comprise about a fourth of online shopping frauds. 

“Puppy scams remain consistently profitable for scammers because their multi-tiered setup allows them to convincingly go back to a consumer several times to ask for money,” the BBB reported in a news release. 

“Because purchasing a pet can be such an emotionally charged experience, BBB urges consumers to be on high alert for scams.” 

California ranks first nationwide in online puppy-scam activity, with 167 reports totaling more than $130,000 in financial losses filed between Jan. 1 and Oct. 31 of this year, according to the website Veterinarians.org.

Many of the bogus websites appear and vanish quickly, making them difficult for authorities to track and prosecute. 

And while consumer losses across North America are on the decline, they’re still expected to exceed more than $2 million this year, with an average loss of about $850 per case, says the BBB.

The American Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals (ASPCA) already cautions against giving pets as holiday gifts, recommending it only for those expressing a “sustained interest” in owning and caring for a pet responsibly. 

“We also recommend that pets be obtained from animal shelters, rescue organizations, friends, family or responsible breeders — not from places where the source of the animal is unknown or untrusted,” the ASPCA’s website says. 

According to the BBB, puppy scammers typically lure in their victims with fake websites and promises of cute puppies, then seek additional money for add-ons such as shipping costs or special crates. 

Yorkies, dachshunds and French bulldogs account for nearly 30 percent of the scams, although victims mentioned more than 40 different breeds when filing reports with the BBB, “meaning that buyers should be cautious when shopping for any breed online.”

Those who try buying pets without seeing them in person, use hard-to-track payment methods such as payment apps and accept extra charges such as shipping insurance or special cages are at more risk of being scammed, the BBB says. 

The BBB offers the following tips for researching online puppy sellers:

• See pets in-person before paying any money.
• Try to set up a video call to view the animal.
• Conduct a reverse image search on photos attached to ads.
• Research the breed to figure out the average market price.
• Check out a local animal shelter for pets to meet in person before adopting.

If you’ve fallen victim to a puppy scam, contact the following organizations for help: 

• BBB Scam Tracker (www.bbb.org/scamtracker) to report online fraud.
• Federal Trade Commission (FTC) at reportfraud.ftc.gov to file a complaint online, or call 877-FTC-HELP.
• Your credit card issuer – Report the incident if you shared your credit card number, even if the transaction was not completed. Monitor your statements and request a refund if you suspect fraud.
• Petscams.com (petscams.com/report-pet-scam-websites) which tracks complaints, catalogues puppy scammers and works to shut down fake pet-sales websites.

Meanwhile, in pet-gifting situations, the ASPCA suggests the recipient have a flexible schedule that allows for the pet’s easy transition into the home, “especially important during the holidays and other busy times,” the website says. 

Blonde’ director: People shouldn’t care if I exploited Marilyn Monroe, she’s dead.

This person’s coldness and dismissive comments about Marilyn Monroe are frustrating, especially when you're working hard to restore her reputation. It's disheartening to see someone damage her legacy, even now. His lack of respect for the truth is a setback, but your dedication to clearing her name shows your commitment to her story.