How to Become a Private Investigator
Private investigators’ lives and careers have been immortalized in numerous movies, novels, plays, and tales. Private Investigators are readily seen in movies, TV programs, or comic books as lone-wolf legends, independent geniuses, and heroes with an exciting life rooted in mystery. However, what’s it like to work as a private investigator in this present world and age?
Though, this profession, which is usually idolized, can be easily accessed more than you seem to realize. If you’re passionate about solving mysteries, you’re curious about what you need to become a private investigator, search no further then. We’ve provided you with all you need in this useful guide.
Who’s a private investigator?
A private investigator is an individual who is being employed to offer investigatory law services. Private investigators often work with lawyers in criminal and civil matters.
What is surprising about becoming a private investigator is just how complex the field is evolving. However, here is a list of typical investigation specialty you may specialize in:
- Crimes against persons
- Personal family investigations
- Child custody investigations
- Attorney legal support
- Cyber extortion and bribery
- Workplace drug trafficking
- Genealogy, probate, and estate
- Manufacturing and industrial theft
- Lost and unclaimed assets
- Workers compensation fraud
- Art and jewelry theft
- Corporate crisis management
- Fraud and forgery investigations
- Litigation support
- Brand protection
You can also specialize in motor vehicle investigations, surveillance, insurance, and fraud and cyber forensics.
How to Become a Private Investigator in Five Easy Steps
Step 1: Decide on the type of investigator you’ll like to be
Contrary to popular opinion, private investigators do much more than tracking suspicious activity. They exist in various disciplines and forms — taking their skills and abilities further than “personal” encounters.
The type of investigation you decide to engage in will determine the training and education you require. That’s why you need to research your chosen trajectory personally.
Remember the adage ‘jack of all trades, master of none.’ it should be put into use when it comes to the world of private investigation. You definitely can’t do all at once.
Several Private Investigators start an agency, and they do every kind of case they come across, yet they aren’t great at any of them.
Keep in mind that if you’re going to be more successful, then you should get credibility in a particular field. You could have a little knowledge and experience in all kinds of investigations or be excellent at one or two. This would make clients see you as “the man for the job” in that particular case.
Private Investigators who are new to this profession should seek the knowledge and experience that handle various cases. After some exposure, it’ll be effortless to choose your area of expertise or two.
They can learn everything they need to know about this particular case, go for training to learn more, and mingle with clients who might need these services.
Step 2: Obtain the necessary education and training.
According to (BLS) Bureau of Labor Statistics, acquiring at least a high school diploma, has become an essential requirement for private investigators.
Yet, that standard keeps increasing. Many states have raised the standard within these previous years, and now getting a college degree is now the standard for some states.
Regardless of how this may sound, this is great because it ensures that only professionals and ideal experts work in the industry.
Recent job postings affirm that more than 70 percent of jobs advertised for private investigators in the previous year demanded a Bachelor’s degree, and some requested for even higher.
Although by BLS, you can dive into the profession with an Associate’s degree in Criminal Justice or with a good military or law enforcement experience, this depends on your state.
A corporate investigator needs to have a Bachelor’s degree in Business, Accounting, or any related field, while computer forensics investigators ought to have a Bachelor’s degree in Criminal Justice or Computer Science.
All of these fields apply to several different areas of modern private investigation.
Step 3: Acquire experience.
Field experience is very important as it makes a huge difference in the world of private investigation.
Numerous Private Investigators branch into the investigation only when they’ve gotten adequate experience in a quite similar profession. Corporate investigators usually work for some time in accounting and business before venturing into this career.
Cyber investigators also work in a technology-related career for a period. It could be in a legal, military, or law enforcement capacity. Private Investigators can undergo training in a different profession for a sometime before becoming detectives.
Notwithstanding, some Private Investigators gain their experience by entering straight into the industry.
Step 4: Obtain your license.
Requirements for becoming a Private investigator were haphazard for a long period now. Getting one’s license is continually becoming very strict, even as the requirements and standards have been raised in many states. It is trending, and this is so encouraging for current Private Investigators.
Although in a few states, Private Investigators don’t need any license, and this is a catastrophe. You might be wondering why? It is because anybody can start advertising their services as a private investigator. They might eventually do a terrible or inappropriate work that would portray a bad image or even ruin the industry’s reputation as a whole.
Every state varies in their terms; we would recommend you inquire about your state’s licensing requirements first because many states will need some job training or internship.
Make inquires about the licensing requirements of a private investigator in your state to know where you stand.
Step 5: Get certified.
Getting certified might not be necessary for your work as a Private Investigator. But it will certainly be advantageous.
Being more learned and having more letters after your name will make your clients feel competent for the job because of your level of expertise.
The (CFI) Certified Fraud Investigator certification is worth the money, time, and effort used to earn it because employers would prefer hiring someone with a CFI certification.
The AML (Anti-Money Laundering certification) is getting bigger as time goes by, especially with numerous online schemes and fraud. Any certification is beneficial, and many of them can be gotten with 2,000 USD, and they would only take a couple of weeks of courses to obtain.
It would be best if you always remember being a private investigator because tools and technology are constantly evolving, so it is crucial always to study your craft and try to move at the same pace with changing times.
As a Private Investigator, you can join a professional association always to be notified of industry status and relationships with your fellow professionals.
Five Common Cases Private Investigators Work On
Private investigators usually work on cases that other professionals aren’t taken care of though they serve an important function incorporate or justice.
Here are a few of the common cases private investigators handle:
Background Checks
Several private investigators include background checks in the list of services they offer. Background checks scrutinized a person’s history and could reveal crucial information, like an individual’s criminal history, address history, credit, social connections, and professional history.
A background check can be utilized for employment or acceptance into an organization. Background checks can also be executed when an individual gets into a romantic relationship with someone and intends to check if they have any dark secrets about their past; they would prefer to remain undisclosed.
Furthermore, robust background checks can also be conducted to offer security clearance for a person.
Surveillance
The main purpose of why someone might consider hiring a private investigator is to conduct surveillance on a target. An individual might need surveillance if he or she thinks another person intends to harm him or her.
Surveillance might also be required in civil investigations, like when an insurance company is trying to obtain evidence about a person who claims to be seriously injured.
Some cases might include corporate fraud, workers’ compensation, infidelity suspicions, personal injury, etc.
Family Law Matters
Family law matter is yet one of the typical reasons people hire a private investigator. There are times private investigators are hired to gather evidence that is needed in a civil trial, like a divorce or child custody case.
They can also be hired to help when someone went missing person or help in relocating adopted family members.
Private investigators are usually needed in the divorce context for tasks like finding hidden assets in a divorce.
Infidelity Investigations
Private investigators might also be hired to investigate a spouse who is being suspected of committing infidelity. Infidelity investigations are usually requested because an individual might be unable to know if they’re partner is cheating or not and needs an expert person to conduct surveillance and an investigation to determine whether their partner has been cheating on them.
Normally, a person has to witness infidelity with their own eyes before they can be sure their spouse has been disloyal. He or she may be constantly reassured of loyalty only to witness the total opposite.
Various Investigations
Private investigators always investigate various cases. These investigations usually differ in nature. Many investigations might include insurance companies, such as home care, workers’ compensation, and life insurance.
These investigators can find information that had been initially kept secret. Investigators might discover that individuals had partaken in insurance fraud or are even try to sabotage a shareholder or business partner.
Other cases might warrant scrutiny of business operations or look into domestic helpers for a case of theft or abuse.
Corporate investigations might examine the legitimacy of a business partner, the loss of certain information, how it might have happened, or the discussions people have about an owner without the owner knowing about it.
The Dos and Don’ts of Being a Private Investigator
There are countless myths that people believe about what is private investigators means. In movies, a private investigator can break into buildings to get some information, track people and take pictures of what happens in a home, or execute other activities real private investigators aren’t permitted to do. Since you want to become a private investigator knowing what you are allowed and aren’t allowed to do is important.
Why are private investigators employed, and who employs them?
Private investigators are experts who are great at getting information and can use it to assist any person who requires more information concerning a business or individual.
But, they can only act within the law’s confines to collect the necessary information; however, they can help carry out other tasks.
This could involve searching for birth parents, finding a person who’s gone missing, checking business security for the owner, or checking if a spouse is unfaithful.
A private investigator can handle various kinds of cases and can get lots of information without having to break the law.
Is a Private Investigator Permitted to Arrest Someone?
In most cases, a private investigator cannot arrest an individual, even when caught in the crime. Though, the private investigator has permission to document the crime taking place that instant, so long as they don’t go against any law while doing so and can inform the law enforcement to notify them about the crime.
Even though this might lead to the person’s arrest, the private investigator wouldn’t be the one arresting them, as they have not become police officers in any way; thus, it is not in their place to do so.
A private investigator makes a citizen’s arrest a few times but only if it’s legal in their jurisdiction. Some states permit this, while a few others forbid it. Nevertheless, a citizen’s arrest isn’t an arrest, and the private investigator can’t take the person to prison. But rather, they can detain someone until the police show up and make their arrest.
Information from a private investigator can lead to a person’s arrest.
Private investigators could obtain evidence when they conduct surveillance if they were able to find evidence of a crime while during their search, they can inform the police to alert them to the crime.
Afterward, they can now document all they know about the crime in question while waiting for the law enforcement officers to come.
The private investigator can now give any evidence they have to the law enforcement officers who showed up at the scene.
In court, the information that had been gathered by the private investigator can now be used against the arrested individual to secure a conviction.
But note that the evidence that was given to the law enforcement must have been collected legally. However, private investigators have many ways of gathering evidence before they consider telling the police about a crime.
Can private investigators carry a badge?
A private investigator is not a law enforcement officer, so they can’t impersonate one. This issue is taken very seriously by law enforcement agencies so, because of this, many states don’t permit private investigators to carry a badge or even wearing a uniform.
So, if a private investigator is found carrying a badge or wearing a uniform and someone unknown assumes they’re a police officer, they might land in trouble and get arrested.
However, in places where a badge is necessary, private investigators that are licensed are usually careful to avoid the misconception involved.
Can private investigators trespass?
Even though private investigators are allowed to go anywhere public, they are not permitted to trespass. They can’t enter a house or building which they haven’t been granted permission into.
But if the owner of that particular home or property permits them to enter, then they can enter the home and find the necessary information.
Notwithstanding, they can’t barge into any premises, they can’t pick locks to gain entrance, and they aren’t allowed to force themselves into any building or property.
When there’s a situation where a private investigator was initially granted access to a building, and the owner suddenly has a change of mind, the private investigator has to vacate the property as soon as possible.
Laws prohibit private investigators from wiretapping.
Eavesdropping into people’s conversations is indeed a great way for private investigators to access lots of information, although they have to be very careful while doing this.
Not every state permits the recording of audio; therefore, private investigators should be mindful of the state’s laws.
The many States will need the consent of either of the two individuals involved. When they are given one party’s consent, it implies that the private investigator can record the conversation even when the other party is unaware.
When it comes to two-party consent, both the private investigator and the individual they’re speaking to must be notified before they can start recording.
But when a private investigator is listening to the conversation between two people and they aren’t included in that conversation, they aren’t permitted to record their discussion.
Moreover, they could take pictures of the two people discussing and write every detail they obtain from that. Still, they shouldn’t use a recording device when the individuals didn’t give them consent.
Pictures can’t be taken through windows into a home.
In several movies, we might see private investigators tracking their subject, taking many pictures of the subject walking or even after they’ve entered a house.
But in reality, Private investigators don’t take several pictures except it was taken in a public environment. A home is an exception to this as the person expects privacy; therefore, private investigators can’t take pictures through a home’s windows.
In several places, they also aren’t allowed to take pictures of someone in their backyard or in every other place where they normally expect privacy.
Once the person leaves their home, the private investigator can start taking the pictures again so long the person is outside, in a public place, where they don’t expect to get any privacy.
Note, there are severe penalties when private investigators who go against laws concerning privacy expectations are caught. Therefore, they ought to understand their states’ local laws and laws, having in mind what they can and can’t do.
So what can a private investigator do?
Although we’ve listed many things a private investigator isn’t permitted to do, there are still many things a private investigator can do to obtain the information needed about their case.
While finding the information, they can collect various records on an individual, conduct surveillance, and track an individual’s movement to know more about their character and the activities they engage in.
The information gathered might include their previous and current phone numbers or addresses, their properties, their relationship status, and their profiles on social media.
They can also search through many different databases online to acquire information on marriages and divorces, criminal records, voter registrations, and mortgage records.
They can also search through the trash as long as it is legal in that area and not on private property. They can interrogate relatives, friends, neighbors, and colleagues to know more about the person or determine their current location.
Every detail can be used to build a case and know more about their monitoring. Afterward, they can report back to their employer with all the information they were able to gather.
There are many things Private investigators can do to obtain more information about people they were hired to monitor. But, they must adhere to all the local and federal laws.
How Much Does a Private Investigator Earn?
You might be wondering what the pay of a private investigator is? As concluded by BLS, the national average annual wage of a Private investigator is $57,100. At times it could be $6000 lower than that.
But the average salary depends on the state’s cost of living.
Conclusion
With this information under your belt, you have every tool you need to venture into your dream profession. Just ensure you are always updated on the laws of your state. Include some patience and hard work, and then you’re good to go!