by admin_lauth | Mar 20, 2017 | Corporate Investigations, Cyber Crime, Cyber Investigations, Investigations, Technology, Theft
We expose more of ourselves on a daily basis than at any other time in history. Most people have some form of social media an enterprising sleuth could build a profile based off of just by pressing the “older posts” button. There’s been a lot of news about wiretaps lately, but something under most people’s radar are the Smart TV’s and toys that have been listening to their owner’s conversations.
While it’s scary enough to consider how many things in your home could be listening in on you this very moment, what’s even more concerning is how quickly you can lose control of these devices and extorted to get them back. And it’s not just individuals having their devices and data taken from them, it’s also hit schools, hospital and private businesses hard over the last year.
One of the most common forms of extortion today is the use of “ransomware” to lock people or companies out of their electronics and data. Ransomware is a term for a particular kind of hacking that’s been on the rise as internet reliance has increased. Victims of ransomware typically receive a message on their device’s display saying something to the effect of “pay us this money and we’ll give you back your data.”
In an interview with CNN, South Carolina public school administrator Charles Huck, highlighted the dilemma presented by ransomware when he said, “You get to the point of making the business decision: Do I make my end-users — in our case teachers and students — wait for weeks and weeks and weeks while we restore servers from backup? Or do we pay the ransom and get the data back online more quickly?”
If the targets of ransomware want their systems or data back then they don’t have much choice, but to pay the fee. The hackers have repeatedly targeted hospitals since their technology working is literally a case of life or death there is significant pressure on the hospitals to simply pay the ransom.
When Hollywood Presbyterian Medical Center had some of it’s communication devices taken over by hackers last year, the criminals demanded $17,000 to be paid in bitcoin. The hackers asked for that amount, because it’s low enough most places will pay under the impression it’s the quickest way to get it all over with.
“The malware locks systems by encrypting files and demanding ransom to obtain the decryption key. The quickest and most efficient way to restore our systems and administrative functions was to pay the ransom and obtain the decryption key,” Chief Executive Allen Stefanek said when the LA Times asked why they paid the hackers. “In the best interest of restoring normal operations, we did this.”
One of the scarier things about ransomware is this is only the beginning. The FBI reported ransomware to be a $1 billion industry in 2016. In a follow-up story CNN reported:
At that rate, ransomware is on pace to be a $1 billion a year crime this year. The FBI told CNN that the number “is quite high” because a few people “reported large losses.”
The agency also said that the losses could even be bigger once other related costs from these extortion schemes are factored in. Plus: Some victims may choose to pay and not report the crime.
Paul Roberts, founder and editor of a website called The Security Ledger told CNN, “The ransomware criminals understand this. Their business in some ways is a volume business so they don’t set their ransom so high that you can’t pay it. They set it at a level so they can get their money and move on to the next victim.”
This crime has even made its way into consumer electronics like smart phones and TVs. Last Christmas a photo of an LG TV stricken with ransomware went viral.
The hackers demand far less money to relinquish control of personal devices, but $500, especially if it’s on Christmas Day after you’ve spent money on gifts, is still a lot. In December, Slate reported:
“Ransomware works by taking over a system until a user pays a fee, often in the form of cryptocurrency or digital gift cards. One recent high-profile ransomware attack shut down much of San Francisco’s public transit system while another targeted a Hollywood hospital. More mundane ransomware has been reported on Android devices since at least 2014, and Frantic Locker first began to show up on phones in 2015.
Keep your systems operating systems up to date and don’t download files that aren’t from trusted site to help avoid ransomware. If you do all these things and still end up under attack, contact your systems administrator or the manufacturer of your device. Take precaution, because ransomware isn’t going away anytime soon.
David Schroeder, Blog Writer, Lauth Investigations International
by admin_lauth | Feb 23, 2017 | Corporate Investigations
Whether you are entering a merger, considering an investment, or assessing a competitor’s advantage, due diligence is a necessary factor to ensure a successful outcome. Business leaders know the importance of growth but every opportunity presented holds the potential for success or failure.
Business intelligence consists of collecting and organizing large amounts of data that enable businesses to identify opportunities and develop strategies that promote long-term success. Hans Peter Luhn, a researcher for IBM, said in a 1958 IBM Journal article, “Business intelligence is the ability to apprehend the interrelationships of presented facts in such a way as to guide action toward a desired goal.”
Successful business leaders know the importance of information gathering and review before making any business decision. They draw information and knowledge from various professional disciplines including business consulting, law firms, journalists, and of course investigators.
For instance, when considering a merger with another company it is crucial to know as much about the company’s history, business management, ethics, financial solvency, possible undisclosed liabilities, leadership of the company, and their affiliations. All business transactions have potential risks and it important to assess these risks prior to entering any business transaction. The public information gathered can be quite revealing and prevent a decision that could devastate years of hard work, reputation, and even avoid litigation in the aftermath.
Another circumstance that could arise is that your company may want to know the demographics of your competitor’s clients. The information gathered would contain the number of products offered by the company, how many were products were purchased, how many were sold to men or women, the age brackets of those who purchased the products, the average income level, zip code, and level of education. Utilizing a combination of commercial due diligence and intensive analytical due diligence can forecast sales growth; identify a competitor’s operational metrics, procurement, customer management, and even fraud.
While business intelligence can identify external opportunities and risks, internal business intelligence can be equally important. For instance, in the Human Resources Department of a company, the data collected on employee’s absences can be a predictive trend and therefore a strategy developed to combat income loss and retain employees. The same company may want to gauge how their latest marketing campaign is increasing sales in order to produce a trend analysis report and present the information in east to understand graphs and charts in PowerPoint at the next Board Meeting. The advantage of data analysis is endless when assessing performance measures of a business.
Professional investigative teams have private investigators that can verify information, collect information about financial transactions, assets, investments, liabilities, and identify existing contracts, business practices, and even political associations. The information is then provided to the client providing a solid base for decision-making.
Business intelligence involves research, measurement, querying, analytics, data mining, performance management, reporting, identifying benchmarks, information sharing, and regulatory compliance. To implement effective business intelligence strategy, it is important to have skilled investigators to help your company obtain the needed information while conducting a legal, ethical, and discreet investigation.
According to Thomas Lauth, owner and lead private investigator at Lauth Investigations International, business intelligence has become a necessary component of business management worldwide. “From a negative media campaign to competing for a contract, knowing who your opposition is and their political and media affiliations, marketing and internet campaigns, and even motives will give you the competitive edge” says Lauth. “The old saying, it is better to be safe than sorry!” rings true.
Written By: Kym L. Pasqualini
by admin_lauth | Feb 22, 2017 | Personal Investigations
How can an Indianapolis private investigator help keep my child safe during divorce or child custody dispute?
All too common in today’s headlines are stories involving children who have been abused. While we worry about our children’s safety around strangers, we sometimes fail to take the proper precautions to keep children safe in their own environments. Private investigators specializing in child custody investigations work directly with an attorney to generate a formative case for impeachment. Child custody investigators are trained to investigate and detect child abuse, neglect, substance and alcohol abuse, and other behaviors that may endanger a child. The information gathered by a qualified child custody private investigator about a custodial or non-custodial parent during a legal custody investigation, can uncover behavior that places a child at risk of harm, while also documenting the incidents of concern. This is a critical step in ensuring the information gathered during the child custody investigation can be presented in court if necessary. During cases of separation and divorce, no corner should be cut when considering the safety of a child, and a qualified private investigator can literally save a child’s life.
Why is it important to utilize a private investigator specializing in child custody investigations?
Any separation or divorce is an emotional time during one’s life. At times, the situation can become volatile. While a parent’s first priority should be the child’s safety and emotional stability, it is not uncommon for parents to make false allegations to restrict the other parent’s access to the child. Unfortunately, children commonly become the pawns during a divorce and child custody case. Utilizing a private investigator specializing in custodial investigations can reduce incidents of false accusations, substantiate legitimate allegations, and ensure the child’s well-being is first priority.
Ideally, a qualified and licensed private investigator is hired to conduct the child custody investigation and work directly with an attorney during the pre-filing phase. The private investigator and the attorney handling the case work together to ensure all concerns are addressed prior to filing the case in court. This also ensures as much information as possible is presented to the court during the initial phase of the child custody case.
What happens during a child custody investigation?
A child custody investigator can document critical information during exchanges and visitations to chronicle how the child is treated while in the care of the other parent. Gathering evidence supporting mistreatment or neglect of a child during a legal custody investigation can entail interviewing the other parent, questioning witnesses, and conducting background checks on all parties involved in the child’s care. In addition, an experienced private investigator will conduct an on-site assessment of the child’s home can determine if the child is being cared for in a suitable environment by evaluating the cleanliness of the home and those who reside in, or frequently visit the home.
Also very common is utilizing video surveillance to document the parent’s behavior while the child is in their care, documenting those the parent associates with and who the parent may be exposing the child to, if the parent is participating in an illegal of reckless behavior, and any incidents of abuse such as keeping record of any bruises or injuries. Hiring a licensed child custody investigator ensures the investigation is conducted legally and the quality of evidence gathered can be used in a court of law. If required, the investigator will also provide expert court testimony.
Should I hire a child custody private investigator and what should I be doing?
- In court, judges commonly hear accusations from both sides. At times it becomes very difficult to determine who may be telling the truth and if concerns are warranted. Evidence presented in court by a licensed private investigator provides documented proof of allegations the court must take into consideration when making a ruling in a child custody case. It is especially important to present an accurate representation of a person’s character during any court case and even more important when children’s lives are impacted.
- If you suspect the other parent may be abusing your child emotionally or physically while in their care, it is important to substantiate those concerns. While hiring an investigator can guide and assist you, keeping a journal of any negative events, comments your child makes that are of concern, comments or threats the other parent makes to you, are helpful. Especially important, document any injuries the child has sustained in the care of the other parent by keeping written record and photographs of the injuries. Also, record any medical treatment received by a medical professional.
- If you suspect the other parent may be drinking excessively or involved in substance abuse while caring for the child, a private investigator can document the other parent’s actions by observing their daily activities, document those who come and go at the residence, and detect drug and alcohol abuse.
- If you suspect the other parent is neglectful, participating in any kind of criminal behavior, or associating with individuals who may have a criminal background, it is best to have a private investigator perform a comprehensive background check on the other parent, anyone that resides with the parent or has interaction with your child. It is important to keep in mind, most incidents of child abuse and child death, occur within the home of a child and injuries inflicted by those trusted to care for the child.
- If you are not certain who the other parent is associating with, a private investigator can conduct surveillance to document who is coming and going at the home, even documenting license plates to determine the identity of individuals permitted to be in close proximity or care for your child.
If you are concerned about how a child custody investigation may affect your child, it is important to know professional private investigators are highly trained in child custody investigations to utilize investigative methods that minimize exposure of the child to the investigation. In fact, most investigations can be conducted without the child ever knowing, as the investigator is there to protect the child and serve in their best interest.
When children’s safety is in question, it is always best to be safe than sorry. If no questionable behavior is uncovered, everyone can feel secure knowing the child is in safe hands with two loving and responsible parents.
About the Author: Kym L. Pasqualini is founder of the Nation’s Missing Children Organization in 1994 and the National Center for Missing Adults in 2000. Kym is an expert in the field of missing persons and continues to advocate for crime victims utilizing 20 years’ experience working with government officials, law enforcement, advocates, private investigators, and national media.
by admin_lauth | Feb 9, 2017 | Private Investigations News
Private investigators do a variety of work. They track down missing people and recover lost assets. They keep an eye on spouses when one partner is worried about infidelity or in the process of divorce. Private investigators look into business assets during a merger and vet CEOs to make sure there are not hidden secrets that will embarrass the company later.
People tend to assume private investigators only do one kind of work, but that’s a mistake. Here are some stories from around the web that demonstrate the versatility of private investigators and all they do.
Private eyes look for runaways, sex-trade victims to rescue
Founder and operator of Lauth Investigations International, Thomas Lauth, was featured in this article from the San Diego Tribune about private investigators working to recover missing people being trafficked into the sex trade.
In Indiana, Thomas Lauth, founder of Lauth Investigations, said his company has worked trafficking cases since “before the word ‘trafficking’ ever came around.”
Historically, he said, law enforcement turned their backs on trafficking victims they viewed simply as prostitutes.
He said that often times a girl is recruited by a friend who introduces her to a trafficker or pimp.
“Police say she left on her own. Parents don’t know what to do. They call police repeatedly. Then they call an investigator,” Lauth said.
Obviously we’re very happy to see Tom’s hard work and dedication to helping families and children being featured in such a big newspaper, but we’re even happier for the work itself. Tom has a long history of finding missing people and helping families recover their loved ones. It’s hard work, but Tom loves doing it and always gets it done.
Private Investigator Investigates Client while Client Investigates Him
In a strange case of cat and mouse, Buzzfeed Motion Pictures employee Mike Carrier hired a private investigator to investigate himself and see what he could dig up. Unbeknownst to the private investigator, Carrier hired a second private investigator to investigate the first private investigator. The story ends rather anticlimactically, but it’s worth reading just for the uniqueness of the situation.
Man Trashes Woman’s Home then Rinses his Hair
Burglars breaking into people’s home and using their showers is surprising common as we wrote about here. While most people would assume burglars want to get in and out as quickly as possible, they’re frequently tempted to get far too comfortable in the homes they invade.
In Youngstown, Ohio this week a man broke into a woman’s house and trashed the inside before the homeowner returned and found the man rinsing his hair in the shower. Surveillance video showed the man came from a convince store around the corner. Police said the man had a lengthy burglary record.
Star of Mannix, Mike Connors, Dies at age 91
Mannix was a tv show that aired for eight season on CBS starting in 1967. Mike Connors played the hero and title namesake Mannix. The show was a big hit despite poor first season ratings. Mannix was a private investigator in Los Angeles who solved street crime and mixed it up with bad guys.
In the CBS News obituary Connors said Mannix was a hit because, ““Up until Mannix, most private investigators were hard-nosed, cynical guys who lived in a seedy area and had no emotions. Mannix got emotionally involved. He was not above being taken advantage of.”
David Schroeder, Blog Writer, Lauth Investigations International
by admin_lauth | Feb 7, 2017 | Tips & Facts
This was a big week for news in America. It seemed like a new story broke before you could finish reading about the first one. All of the major networks and newspapers were scrambling to report on everything taking place, but one story in the private investigation world stood out me more than the others.
The headline “Stranger enters Arizona woman’s home, eats food, uses shower, sleeps in her bed, police say” was attention grabbing and hard to forget. Most people would read this headline and quickly move on under the assumption that surely this was an outlier. This is a case of one dumb criminal who got far too cozy during a break, but if you do the slightest bit of googling, you’ll quickly find it’s really not that uncommon for home intruders to do these kinds of things. Here’s a rundown of some similar incidences and what you can do to protect your home and property.
Denver Police Warn Home Owners String of Break-ins, Burglars Eating their Food
In 2015 there were a series of break-ins across Denver. Each of the burglaries had something in common; the thieves weren’t stealing anything, but were breaking in and eating food at the houses. Wile nothing was stolen, it was happening so often that Denver police issued a warning to people in the area.
Denver police didn’t think the break-ins were related, but that almost makes it stranger. What are the odd all of these people were breaking into houses just to steal food? One of the burglaries was perpetrated by a kid. The homeowner walked into to find the kid watching anime on her tv while eating food. He ran from the scene when they cam home.
Arizona Man Enters Home, Sleeps in Woman’s bed, has Standoff with Police
The case referenced in the introduction took place in Mesa, Arizona last October. Joshua Forsgren broke into a home and took a nap inside the homeowners bed. Forsgren must have been pretty tired from all that burglarizing, because he was still asleep when the homeowner came arrived home with her children and found him in her bed.
She quickly exited the house and called police. When the police arrived they tried to get Forsgren to exit the home of his own volition, but he had other ideas. As police waited outside they observed Forsgen going through the house and eating food. After 90 minutes the police entered the home and took Forsgren down with a stun gun. He’s now in jail awaiting trial.
Man breaks into house, takes shower, eats pizza, but steals nothing
The Florida Man stories never cease to amaze us. If you’re unfamiliar with Florida Man, do a quick search and you’re mind will be blown. Whether it’s Florida Man setting his underwear on fire at a Starbucks or when Florida Man got body slammed by a pro wrestler after threatening him with a bb gun while trying to make him buy him a beer, Florida Man is always up to something.
While this story is surprising, Florida Man being the perpetrator sure isn’t. In September, 36-year-old Timothy Tomlinson broke into a home, showered, ate pizza and downed two bottles of water. Tomlinson didn’t steal anything, but he was charged with burglary for unlawfully entering the home. Luckily the homeowner didn’t lose any valuables to theft, but Tomlinson broke multiple kitchen windows to get in.
What does this mean to you?
It’s alarming to think someone could just enter your home while you’re gone. The fear of coming home while someone is still in your house is a scary proposition. One of the easiest things to do is make sure all of your doors and windows are locked whenever you head out. Porch lights are a great deterrent and they can help ward of would-be burglars by making it difficult for them to approach the home undetected.
Security cameras are excellent to catch in perpetrator in the act, but they’re also good at scaring burglars off. Some burglars are dumb enough to see cameras on a house and try to break in anyways, but most won’t. It’ll also give you excellent evidence to help the police catch any intruders.
Another great tip is is catalogue your property. By keeping an active inventory of all of your valuables, you’ll be able to immediately identify any property that’s stolen and provide pictures to police. This is as easy as snapping a picture with your phone and saving them to the cloud with a brief description you can write in your notes app.
If family heirlooms are stolen, consider contacting a private investigation firm like Lauth Investigations International. While the police would like to catch every single burglar and return property to their owners, their resources are limited and if it’s not a violent crime their motivation to catch the crook is low. Private investigators on the other hand work exclusively for you and know where to look for stolen goods. Armed with pictures and descriptions of the items, private investigators like Thomas Lauth can make short work of finding your belongings.
David Schroeder, Blog Writer, Lauth Investigations International
