It’s probably the ultimate Catch-22 for private investigators – by investigating someone without their knowledge, you might actually be invading their privacy. But without invading their privacy, you might not be able to perform your job effectively and later find yourself out of business. So how and where do you draw the line?

Privacy, anyone?
The problem with the concept of privacy is that it’s very dynamic – it changes, depending on where you are, who you’re talking to, who’s doing the violation and why. In the past when analog reigned supreme, protecting your privacy as a civilian was much simpler.

With the more invasive technology available today, it has become quite challenging to do so. Information on virtually anybody can be obtained with just a few clicks on the mouse and a few characters typed on a keyboard. For a few dollars, certain private information such as a phone number or an address can be obtained, particularly if it’s in the public records.

Running your PI service
Probably one of the very first lessons in law you will need to acquaint yourself with as a working private investigator is the law regarding a person’s right to privacy. Under this law, individuals have the freedom to do, say and act as they please, knowing that whatever information is exchanged during that period cannot and should not be breached.

This explains why even PIs cannot obtain information from subjects using deceitful or unscrupulous means. You cannot, for example, steal information and use it against the subject. Even software being used to monitor and record calls and other sensitive information is being questioned.

Learning to draw the line
First off, you should, as a private investigator, understand the limits within which the law demands that you work. Remember that you may be working for your client’s interests but you are also on the side of the law. You can’t and shouldn’t break any legal provisions just for the sake of keeping your client. In the end, either you get charges filed against you or the evidence you broke the law to gather may be considered inadmissible.

If your client requests for a specific information about a subject that you know to be private, you should inquire why they need the information. Their answer should give you a clue on how this information will be used. In some cases, you’ll see that the reason why they want the information may not really be of the utmost importance and that you can help them in some other way to reach the results they want.

It’s important for you as a private investigator to understand that to be able to do your job well, you need to work with certain laws, particularly those that protect people’s rights to privacy. Learn to understand permissible purpose. By doing so, you will be able to do your job and protect your business at the same time.

image credits to mark wales

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