Many changes in technology over the past 30 years have affected how background investigations are conducted. Numerous types of documents, including, but not limited to, court records, bankruptcy filings, real estate records, employment histories, corporate filings, and professional licenses, are now available online or through proprietary databases.
Data brokers like LexisNexis aggregate data, including individuals’ Personally Identifiable Information (PII), and make it available to professional investigators at the click of a button. The advent of artificial intelligence (AI) and machine learning will continue to revolutionize the industry by allowing investigators to analyze extensive data sets rapidly and accurately. Chatbots are another relatively new tool that automate workflows and free up employees from repetitive tasks. Firms can utilize chatbots on their websites to collect information from potential clients or answer frequently asked questions. However, despite all this new technology, it is unlikely that our jobs as investigators will be replaced by robots any time soon.
In the United States, private investigators and researchers are trained to navigate vast, disconnected public records systems. Apart from federal civil litigation and criminal records, there is no one national database that compiles these types of records. The availability of civil and criminal records varies from state to state and from county to county. Some states and municipalities make court records available online either for free or for a small fee, while other jurisdictions only allow records to be searched in person at the courthouse. Any background check firm or private investigator that tells their clients otherwise is incorrect and potentially misleading them.
Aggregators such as LexisNexis or TransUnion TLO are great tools for investigators because they provide a snapshot of an individual’s background. They can help provide leads such as addresses and jurisdictions where the person has lived or worked, and sometimes even include criminal records, traffic violations, or judgments and liens. However, it should be utilized as a starting point only. If a private investigator presents a “data dump” from one of these reports – beware – this is nothing more than raw data that may contain errors and omissions. A skilled investigator must conduct further research and confirm the information, especially in cases when the individual has a common name. When it comes to investigating businesses’ corporate records, such as articles of incorporation or organization, they are often available on the Internet. However, the type and quality of data differs from state to state.
Furthermore, not everything can be gleaned from the Internet or public records databases. Sometimes, investigators must roll up their sleeves and speak with individuals face to face or over the phone. This is what’s known as human intelligence gathering. Investigators will interview witnesses in person or over the phone to gain new insights and information they would not have access to otherwise. In-person interactions also provide further opportunities to ask relevant follow-up questions or press the witness for more details. Trained investigators can even utilize body language or sentence structure techniques to determine if a witness is potentially being deceptive. Site visits can also help further an investigation by reviewing books and records, collecting and cataloging documents, and taking photographs on-site.
Withum’s Investigative and Corporate Intelligence Services Team is prepared to navigate this ever-changing landscape of research and investigations and provide additional guidance to our clients on this topic.
Author: Liz Farkas | [email protected]
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For more information on this topic, please contact a member of Withum’s Investigative and Corporate Intelligence Services Team.
