Individuals often request background investigations for various reasons. Some seek information about prospective tenants, employees, or even potential romantic partners. It is important to note that, depending on the type of information sought, a significant portion of this information can be accessed through public sources, such as court records, police departments, social media accounts, and other online databases. However, if a comprehensive search of a person’s background is required, such as identification verification (driver’s license or Social Security), asset searches, criminal history, address reports, associates, aliases, and financial background, hiring a private investigator is the most suitable option. This is because much of this information is obtained through proprietary online databases and other sources.

For instance, suppose you recently met an individual you know very little about and want to ensure they have not been involved in any legal issues. Most states and local jurisdictions have state court websites that allow you to search for a person’s name and locate any cases they have been involved in. In Idaho, the website is https://icourt.idaho.gov/, and in Washington, it is http://www.courts.wa.gov/. These websites are relatively user-friendly, but knowing their birthdate can help narrow your search. The cases displayed include any criminal or civil matters they are currently or have been involved in in the past. Additionally, if you know where the person currently resides or has resided in the past, you can request through the Public Records Act any police contacts they have had with the local law enforcement agency. This process is similar for addresses. Law enforcement agencies can provide you with any “calls for service” from a residence as long as you have an address and a date range. Most law enforcement agencies have a request form on their website for this service.

Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram are three of the most popular social media platforms on the internet, and they can be a wealth of information if you know how to navigate them. Accessing these websites can reveal a lot about a person’s lifestyle and habits. However, many users have a private profile that limits what you are able to view. Google and Bing are also excellent search engines that you can use to your advantage if you know how. For example, did you know that if you search Christopher Swan with no quotes, it will produce 33 million results, but if you place quotation marks on the name, the results are filtered to 38,000? Now imagine placing the person’s home city within quotes after the person’s name, and it will narrow your results even further.

Be cautious when obtaining information through the many “people search” websites that exist on the internet. Most will charge a fee, and it is unknown how current or accurate the information will be. If you do choose this route, make sure you are able to verify the information through a secondary source before you follow up with the information. This is to not only protect you but also to limit your exposure to any possible liability.

My point to this blog is to do your research. There are many “Open Source Techniques” books and articles available to learn from.

And of course, if you ever have any questions, you can call us at Resolve Investigations LLC at 909-477-1479.