Private Investigators have been hired for a variety of reasons. Most often, the public thinks this takes the form of solving “cases” such as infiltrating organizations, finding information on individuals, all while using Holmesian powers of deduction. In reality, investigators can and have been used for a variety of specified occasions.
Here are a few intriguing examples:
Secret Shopper – A secret shopper or mystery shopper is typically hired by businesses to investigate it’s employees and their treatment of customers. Investigators are hired for their professionalism, and impartiality. Customers giving their unbiased opinion can often only be achieved through methods such as these. Legally, some states require private investigator status in order to be a mystery shopper. Another bonus is a private investigator’s ability to legally gather evidence, providing data and reports of his/her findings upon the investigations conclusion.
Finding Birth Parents – Though modern day media has allowed people to find others themselves, sometimes you need to bring in the big magnifying glasses. Private Investigators have more means, resources, and know-how to find the people once thought lost. PI may use different methods in cases like these because instead of looking for people not wanting to be found, you are searching for someone whose information is dated or vanished. Besides finding long lost relatives, other peculiar cases have cropped up, from locating lost pets, to inspiring teachers.
Locating Items – This can take the form of birth, death, and legal records. Another common reason includes unclaimed assets, which can stem from safety deposit boxes or bank accounts.
Finding Facebook – Yes PI’s have been hired to locate a person’s social media profile. Usually this is done by employers seeking out information on potential hires.
Historical Findings – From finding historical news footage, to historical property holdings, private investigators often become a historian sleuth of sorts in order to find information or items from days of yore.
Obviously this is just the tip of the investigative iceberg, and a PI’s services can be as wide-spread and diverse as the people who desire such services.