Street Light Effect For Private Investigator On The Gold Coast and World Wide

Do you know what the streetlight effect is?

A streetlight effect is a known among good detectives effects all sorts of law enforcement people who only look where people find it easy to look.

This is an essential thing to realize if you are on a case and you must know what the
streetlight effect is.

Say for example, if you were at a shooting and you have been hired as the private investigator looking
for Spent Shell casing, you may think to look only where the streetlight illuminates over the area not
considering the odd chance that fate has intervened!

There are so many variables in a case like this where the light is very poor for example if you were to
be looking for shell casings, they are very hard to find in the well-lit area you may need to look in the
Grass.

Consider earlier on it may be a local Kid picked up the shell casing and decided to keep as a
souvenir or may have moved along and pulled up a manhole cover and drop them in there.
The other thing is they may have bounced and have moved or ricocheted off a moving car and
ended up around the corner far from the area of the crime.

You are going to miss things as an investigator if you only look at the most obvious places if you
want to be a really great private detective you're only looking online for more information you are
missing a ton of evidence.

You know running a few simple database searches or contacting information broker may not get you all the details in your case. Look if you're investigating a crime say for the prosecution or the defense attorneys you really need to do more than computer searches. You need to do real investigator work.

If you're working for the government departments say workers compensation cases cheating hearts
or the infidelity cases and for many of the hardest skip trace is it simply stump list of private.

So the streetlight effect is observational , that occurs when people are searching for something and
look only where it's easiest.

Another term for this is a drunkard search.

An old joke about a drunkard searching for something, the parables told several ways but typically includes the following details.

A policeman one night sees a drunk man searching for something under a street light and ask what the drunk has lost.

He says he's lost his keys and they both look under the streetlight together.

After a few minutes, the policeman asked if you sure he lost them, and the drunk reply is no, and
that he lost them in the park.

The policeman asked why is he sitting here and the drunk replies, this is where the light is.

Why Be A Private Investigator

There can be allot of money in being a investigator as long as you Advance.
What I mean initially you should try out a government or company position in their investigative division.Here in Australia government and most good companies they have a Private investigator division so there is allot of scope for you to Advance in these businesses.
With inherent need now for privacy the data theft and illegal entry of employers and given rise to a new star in surveillance in investigative work so there is huge world wide need for this sort of security intelligence.
Advancement in these areas will secure you a place in a increasing world wide need for company and people be it celebrity’s need to have their data and privacy protected and monitored.

Big Tip FOR NEW PEOPLE

Here’s the thing NOBODY teaches the new people coming into this line of work. The only really good paying jobs are at the district level in retail LP. But… your job there becomes something more like “Operations Manager”.

You will be doing very little investigations and LP and much, MUCH more safety, capital improvements, maintenance, government compliance type things with a whole lot of management of employees mixed in. None of that’s necessary bad, but it ain’t investigative work.

What To DO After you GET YOUR LiCENCE

Consider first to work for a while for investigative branch like insurance government welfare accident compensation insurance or government.I wold steer away from working for yourself first as this may be very hard and getting advancement in these existing government maybe after 10 years may secure a great superannuation package and salary advancements had you gone it alone.

Every bank has a fraud department and companies have a compliance and auditor division there is huge stream of income derived from these businesses.

Though if you feel this is what you rather do its in your blood go it alone your first year could be anything above 40k plus .But after 10 years some of the work can be repeatitive and tiresome so the advancement and a business be private or government may include much more variety and security.

Growing your own agency takes allot time energy and money you may first consider working for a company and leverage the experience and security whilst working alongside doing private work.You need to check the companies compliance but it does give you when you are starting out as a Private Investigator the opportunity to build your skills level and determine areas in your own future agency where your developing strength maybe.

Private Investigators are Useful

Private investigators are useful because they provide people in difficult situations with the knowledge they need to make the right decisions.

Having the support with finding someone dear with the Police helps assist you at times get a faster and personal result.Remember Police can only investigate if there is a crime so you may enlist PI to ensure that your suspicions can be investigated.

You can best believe if you are involved in a legal case against you will need all the intelligence you can get of those who are taking you on legal matters.Assume the other side on legal matters are trying to find out everything about you and it comes down who is best prepared.

This is why an essential step in having a successful outcome with a private investigator is not waiting too late to call.

At the end of the day, most private investigations arise from a client’s gut feeling that “There is more to the story.”

Whether it is a

spouse who is cheating,

and employee who is stealing,

or a colleague who is hiding something,

The job of a private investigator is to clear away the doubt and reveal the truth so that all parties are on equal footing and can make sound, informed decisions about the future. If you think something in your life feels off, a private investigator may be able to use their experience and insight to help you sort it out.

No matter what the industry or situation, knowledge is power; and the sooner you have the information you need, the better chance you have at a good outcome.

free investigative techniques using online tools

FREE Investigation Tips Using Online Tools

Many of our Client’s come to us after they have exhausted their attempts to locate and identify a person in their situation.

Below, we have put together some FREE online tools in which anyone can use to help you with your own research that may save you money with your case.

Please note that any online website that says FREE, is most likely old data, but depending on what you are looking for, it may reveal exactly what you are looking for.

Often we forget about some of the simple lookup tools, like www.whitepages.com.

White pages is a great tool to do a reverse address, reverse phone search, and it gives you other bonuses like other persons listed at the address, and an age range.

The next tool our Cost Private Investigators recommends for USA is the website www.zabasearch.com.

Zabasearch is a little more comprehensive in the results it returns, and it has an advanced search function in which you can be specific with what you are looking for.

I have found that zabasearch returns results that can be very useful such as date/year of birth, address, address history, phone numbers, and middle initials.

Even though the results are similar to White Pages, you get a few extras that can give you more solid results. Below is an example of what you will see with a search with zabasearch.

Searching People

When using OSINT to search for a person, consider every possible variation of the person’s name. Include shortened versions of the person’s name, nicknames, usernames or any version of their name you think they might use.
You can also search someone by their telephone number, email address, physical address, an image or through articles that mention them.

Black Book Online (public records)
Canada411
Intellius
MarketVisual
Peekyou
Phonebook of the World
Pipl
Public Records

Searching Social Media and Dating Sites

you can find not only a person’s profile, but also discover what they are talking about if they participate in online forums on social media platforms. Searching for secondary connections, such as friends, family members, colleagues and ex-partners can reveal a great deal of information about your target and is especially helpful if his or her security settings don’t allow access to profile information and timelines.
Many sites that are not specifically social media sites allow users to set up profiles, and these can be just as revealing as social media sites.

Searching Images and Video

Also search image and video social sites to find photos, videos and discussions related to them. You’d be surprised at how much information you can get from resources.

Flickr
Instagram
Photobucket
SmugMug

Classified Listings

There are several reasons you might want to search classified listings as a source of OSINT in the course of an investigation. In a theft investigation, the target may be trying to sell a stolen item, or might be searching for similar items online. You can also gather information about buyers and sellers from classified listings, including location information.

Amazon
Craigslist
Ebay
Hot Frog
Kijiji

Manta
PicClick
SaleSpider
Used.ca

Background Checks

Conducting background checks requires specific skills and knowledge of procedures and resources. The following links have been provided by Cynthia Hetherington. For more information visit http://www.hetheringtongroup.com.

Accurint
BRBPublications
CourtLink
LexisNexis

LittleSis
PACER
Tracers
US Tax Court

Business Search Sites

When conducting due diligence investigations, or even researching a person you are going to interview in an investigation, it’s a good idea to conduct a search on a variety of OSINT business search sites. This list isn’t comprehensive, but you can use it to get started, then follow the trail.

Better Business Bureau
BizNar
Bloomberg Businessweek
Central and Eastern European Business Directory
Corporate Information
Dun & Bradstreet
Guidestar

Hoovers
Industry Canada
Open Corporates
Orbis Directory
SEC
SEC Company Search

Specialized and Deep Web Searches

There are many sites that are not mainstream, may be buried, hard to find or simply not indexed by general search engines. When you know what you’re looking for, you can dig deeper into your research by going directly to these sites.

Airbnb
Athlinks
DomainTools
Earthcam
Fold3 (military records)
4chansearch
Global Terrorism Database
Human Trafficking
Internet Archive (same as Wayback Machine)

Ipaddresslocator
Snopes
Pageglimpse
Public Records
Wayback Machine
Whatismyipaddress
Webboar
Whoisology

GeoLocation Searches

A geolocation search can help you track a vehicle that has and Automatic Packet Reporting System (APRS), identify the whereabouts of social media activity or identify the physical location of an IP address.
Creepy
Echosec (Social Media search by location)
Google Maps APRS
IP Location

Almost every investigation requires at least some internet research. But when you’re researching the subject of an investigation you may want to avoid warning the person that they are being investigated. If tipped off, it’s easy for suspects to remove social media posts and lock down privacy settings to hide information before you have a chance to see it.
Fortunately, there are ways to keep your identity hidden while conducting internet investigations and it’s a good idea for every investigator to know how to use these tools to search anonymously online.

DuckDuckgo

DuckDuckgo is a search engine that doesn’t track users, nor does it target your IP address or your search history. You get unfiltered results that aren’t targeted to your location, previous searches, or other information known about you. You get more results and you’ll see the same results anyone else using this tool sees. Your results are also from better sources, such as crowdsourced sites and partnerships with other search engines.

HTTrack

HTTrack is a web crawler that provides a way for investigators (and others) to search offline to avoid detection. This tool allows users to download a copy of a website from the internet to a local computer. You can then use your browser to open the site’s pages and search their contents.
The tool has to be downloaded before use.

Ixquick

Similar to DuckDuckgo, Ixquick doesn’t information about you, such as your IP address, search history or your browser information. Ixquick allows provides a method of searching using a proxy to keep your IP address hidden from the sites you visit. You have three options when you search with Ixquick:

Click on the link to go to the page
Click on “highlight” to see basic information about a page so that you can decide whether or not you want to visit it

Click on “proxy” to use a proxy to search the site, for maximum privacy. The website you visit sees Ixquick’s IP address instead of the address of the searcher.

Tor

Perhaps the best known of the anonymous search tools on the internet is Tor, which stands for “the onion router” the name given to the original project software. Tor is notorious for its nefarious uses, but it is also a valuable tool in the online investigator’s arsenal. Tor masks user identities by distributing communications through a worldwide network of relays that are maintained by volunteers. It is used by criminals, law enforcement and everyone in between who has reason to hide their browsing activity and their physical location from anyone who may be watching.
The downside to Tor is that it must be downloaded, unlike many of the other free anonymous internet search tools.

Yippy

Yippy is a popular search engine for investigators and others who value their privacy on the internet. Originally called Clusty, Yippy is a meta-search engine that provides clusters of results. It is also “family friendly’, delivering only content that its owners consider to be appropriate for all ages.
Yippy does not collect personally identifiable information about users although it may collect anonymous data, such as IP addresses. Yippy uses cookies but does not use them to track behavior of users.

Private Investigator Tools Online

What is Surveillance?

Surveillance is the close observation of a person, place, or object. It is the practice of watching a subject in order to document and identify any of the contact, interactions, or whereabouts of the subject. Surveillance investigations can include:

Missing person searches
Cheating spouse investigations
Recurrent theft
Worker’s compensation and personal injury claims
Vandalism

Why Conduct Surveillance?

There are a number of reasons to conduct surveillance. Surveillance is conducted to prevent crime, to obtain evidence of a crime, to obtain evidence in civil suits, to document an individual’s location, to document activities in or around a specific location or building, to obtain information to be used in an interrogation, to gather intelligence, or to obtain information to be used in court.
Simply, you might need surveillance from a qualified private investigator at some point in your life. With marital infidelity on the rise, employee dishonesty increasing, and crime rates a concern for everyone across the country, surveillance is one way you can stay safe and secure. Surveillance gives you the facts and proof you need about those people you trust with your home, your children, your money, and your life. Go to Our Store.

Does Surveillance Affect Privacy?

Many people worry that surveillance affects their privacy. Often times, surveillance is a balancing act of security and privacy concerns. Thus, it’s important to stay on the right side of the law. New privacy laws mean that surveillance through audio and video equipment as well as other forms of surveillance equipment can be restricted when not performed by a private investigator.

Can You Use Home Surveillance Systems?

If you want security surveillance for your home, home surveillance equipment usually causes very few legal problems. As long as you’re not using home surveillance equipment to monitor people without their permission, you can generally use security surveillance equipment to keep your home safe from intruders.

Who Should Conduct Surveillance?

The best option is to hire a qualified private investigator. A professional investigator is licensed and insured to provide surveillance and to gather evidence through audio and video equipment. Plus, a professional investigator is often the most effective way to observe someone or something.

Investigators are trained for years in order to be able to track down debtors and witnesses or uncover dishonesty in any form.

Since private investigators are well-versed in current laws and often work with police and police investigations, you don’t have to worry about legal impediments when you entrust your surveillance needs to an investigator.

Plus, investigators have access to various types of surveillance equipment and special vehicles–that can make surveillance more effective. If surveillance reveals illegal activity, evidence gathered by private investigators often stands up in court much better than evidence gathered by the average citizen.

What Does a Surveillance Investigator Do?

A surveillance investigator uses observation techniques to conduct a variety of investigations. This person typically works to observe the subject of an investigation while remaining undetectable himself.

A surveillance investigator may also perform research pertinent to a case and draft reports in an effort to get to the heart of an investigation and document its progress.

Sometimes, a surveillance investigator also testifies about his findings in a court of law.

Often, a surveillance investigator puts his observation skills to work in investigating a subject. He may also use various types of surveillance equipment to accomplish this task.

For example, a suspicious spouse may hire a surveillance investigator to follow his spouse if he suspects she is cheating. The investigator may observe her comings and goings and take note of the company she keeps. If he observes suspicious activity, he may document it with photographs or video recording evidence and then report his findings back to the person who hired him.

A surveillance investigator may also investigate cases for businesses, including those involving insurance fraud.

For example, he may be called on to observe a person who is seeking compensation for an injury sustained at his place of employment. In this capacity, he may try to obtain evidence that the subject is not injured in the manner that he reported. For example, if he is able to photograph or videotape his subject moving furniture into his home when that subject is supposed to be incapable of physical activity, this can have a dramatic effect on a workers’ compensation claim.

Often, surveillance investigators are depicted in exciting scenes on television and in movies that involve high-speed chases and heroic confrontations. This job is usually quite the opposite of that, however. A surveillance investigator usually uses stakeout techniques to observe his subjects. An individual with this job usually tries to avoid confrontations, as they can be dangerous and put the entire investigation in jeopardy.

Additionally, an individual in this field works to stay hidden and obey the law, so high-speed chases aren’t a typical part of this job.
An individual with this job also typically reports the information he finds. Often, this means creating written documentation of his efforts as well as providing photographs, videos, or other evidence. A surveillance investigator may also be called on to testify about his findings in a court case or to submit his documentation for use as evidence.

Surveillance Equipment Australia

Surveillance cameras are video cameras used for the purpose of observing an area. They are often connected to a recording device or IP network, and may be watched by a security guard or law enforcement officer.

Closed-Circuit Televisions or CCTVs are the most commonly-used surveillance cameras. They’ve been found for years in areas like large retail shops, banks, and government institutions.

Thanks to reduced costs in the manufacture of cameras and video recording equipment, camera systems are becoming more and more commonplace in smaller businesses, and private homes.

Because of the availability of such technology, video surveillance has now been made easier and more possible. At Private Eye, we don’t only provide professional investigation services. If you want to conduct your own investigation and spying, then we are also ready to help you with our spy gadgets. For more information regarding our products and services, browse through the website or contact us online today.

disadvantages of being a private investigator

Definitely isn't easy, I've been doing this work for the last 11 years and is only getting harder. The laws change but so does the awareness of claimants and codes of conduct. Yet the expectation of a client is just increasing. I agree with what was stated though. Its definitely not for everyone. Here in Australia you're either a good surveillance operative or factual investigator, very rarely is an investigator good at both. Stay safe to all those in this field. Shazz B

Lower F0[_]rty Ei8ht 1 week ago (edited)

John Shury Same here. I dealt with a lot of the same things you mention. Mainly the erratic schedule (which lead to my divorce), not knowing when you're going to be on a case or not, and the outgoing revenue is often times more than your income. Fuel, maintenance, case related expenses, ect. The physical inactivity started really getting to me as well. I like to keep in shape, but when you're on a case and you're sitting in a car for 16 hours, the last thing you want to do is come home and work out.

The two worst things about being a P.I. for 24 years (retiring at the end of this month, April) are working for defense attorneys defending the lowest dirtbags on Earth, and... surveillance...Planet Rock Jesus

Look at the top pay for this field, no way. I tried it for a couple of years and burned the gaskets out on my new car keeping the heater/ A/C on. Sitting in a car for extended periods of time is murder on your spine and one joker took my plates ran them through towns in the areas traffic ticket registry and found my home address. I have a wife and two girls to think about. The only watches that led to any real income were infidelity investigations, everything else was a waste of time where I was averaging about minimum wage for the time needed to get any real intel...Christine Freedom

As a truck driver used to living in a vehicle and always working long hours, and a veteran, and already do not have life outside work, your PI job seems much like my job. Everyday is a different day with different conditions that are constantly changing all the time and you have to start work at different times of the day, sleep at different times, eat when you have a chance, bathe when you have time. I've spent 2 continuous years working on the road without a day off. I'd love to give Mobile Survailence a go...Matts Van Life

Ghosts Appear & Fade Away 3 months ago

You forgot to mention piss bottles. ya dont get bathroom breaks. have a bathroom emergency while your subject is active in their yard? better have a bucket with kitty litter in it and get used to poopin in public places separated only by a thin film of tint.

Private Eye Meaning

Private Investigator: Career Guide

Private investigators, also known as private detectives, are often hired to locate missing people, to obtain confidential or deliberately hidden information, and to participate in solving crimes.

Private investigators work for law enforcement agencies, private investigation agencies, or are self-employed and work directly for private clients.

Career Description, Duties, and Common Tasks

A private investigator, or PI, may conduct surveillance and background investigations on individuals, study crime scenes to search for clues, report information to the authorities, and occasionally testify in court.
Some companies hire private investigators to complete undercover work, to conduct background checks and pre-employment verification, to escort valuable property from place to place, or to guard high profile individuals.

PIs uncover facts about the legal, financial, and personal matters of people of interest.

PIs use current technology to recover deleted emails and files and to conduct searches of databases for information about an individual.

Private eyes may also conduct surveillance and interview people related to a case. Investigators must be assertive, unafraid of confrontation, and possess effective communication skills (including the ability to interrogate individuals).

They must also pay close attention to detail to accurately document their activities for their clients and in some cases, for the courts.

Frequently Asked Questions

Question: What kind of hours do private eyes usually work?

Answer: Private detectives should be prepared to work long and irregular hours that may include nights, weekends, and holidays.

Question: How common is it for private investigators to be self-employed?

Answer: About one in four private eyes were self-employed in 2014, according to the BLS.²

Question: Can a private investigator make arrests?

Answer: No. Private detectives, even if they are employed by a law enforcement agency, only have the authority to make a citizen’s arrest. PIs do not have the same authority as police officers and others in law enforcement.

Question: What are some of the services a private eye may offer?

Answer: Private detectives may investigate accidents, suspicious fires, suspected child abuse, and wrongful death.
Have you got substantial and implementable ideas to grow your powerful industry?
Do you wish to drive change or build on success and lead or influence positively in your profession. have you noticed how a small few drag down and attack any form of innovation, and success in tine regulatory compliance industry.
Your right, they would make the funeral industry more depressing if they could. This small, first step no high expectation event is what you have been looking to be involved in .

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Entry level private investigator jobs

We are involved in all manner of different enquiries like

Family relationships
- partner and matrimonial investigations, surveillance,
electronic surveillance, divorce enquiries, finding hidden assets and property.
•
Other relationships
- adoption enquiries, domestic staff background
checks, nanny cams, peace of mind enquiries.
•
Tracing
- missing persons, finding friends, tracing workmates, locating
missing family, tracing adopted children, finding birth parents, recovery of
abducted minors, finding missing pets and animals.
•
Solicitor support
- finding missing persons, tracing beneficiaries, probate
enquiries, locating business assets, evidence gathering, matrimonial
surveillance, process serving.
•
Business support
- test purchasing, security surveys, close protection, VIP
protection, tracing absconding debtors, debt recovery, certificated bailiff service,
polygraph lie detector tests.
•
Business intelligence
- due diligence enquiries, competitor intelligence,
financial investigations, fraud examinations, lifestyle checks, employee
sickness.
•
Background enquiries
- pre & post employment investigations, staff vetting, management vetting, CV checks, statements as to means, pre-sue status enquiries.
•
Claims investigations
- accident at work claims, fraudulent insurance claims, life insurance claims, RTA claims (Road Traffic Accidents), locus reports, theft of goods in transit, interviewing, witness statements.
•
Physical and electronic surveillance
- counter espionage investigations,
internal loss (shrinkage) investigations, theft investigations, electronic
surveillance counter measures.

We will sometimes work long and unsociable hours but the rewards can be great.