Role of Private Investigators in a Security role.
By Margaret Chow
The world is a dangerous place and to be honest, if you are a high profile person who has a constant threat to life then believe me that law enforcement agencies cannot provide the kind of security service and protection which you demand and which can make you feel safe.
High profile persons sometimes demand a domestic and private investigation, audio and video surveillance for round the clock protection of their family. All these needs can only be catered with the help of private investigation and private investigators since government and law agencies are unable to provide active security cover to all and cannot cater to individual requests.
Need For Private Investigators?
In a proactive security service which is a must for celebrity security, private investigators are employed for legal, personal and business reasons. Their task is to trace missing peoples, investigate kidnap threats, trace the origins of life threats and find the truth behind them, identify every potential threat and take necessary steps to eliminate them.
Private investigators are tasked with planning contingencies and conducting on-site physical research in advance for identifying and evaluating all types of potential risks and hazards which could happen there. Most of the security work in celebrity security happens behind the scenes and is carried out by private investigators. The bodyguards you see accompanying the high profile celebrity is in actual the last line of defence. Private investigators are the soul of celebrity security.
Responsibilities of Private Investigators.
Handling Insiders: Private Investigators are tasked to identify Insiders and take necessary steps so as to eliminate them. An Insider is one which is already in the inner circle of the client, has access to all the sensitive information related to the client. An insider is very well known with the lifestyle, travelling schedules and day to day activities of the client. Any such person can become the reason for potential threat if such sensitive data is shared with the miscreants or the people against the client. Such persons can never be trusted as they may inflict potential damage to the client at any point of time. To identify such persons firstly a list of all those persons having sensitive information about the client is prepared and then each of these is evaluated based on various parameters and then probable suspects are placed under intense surveillance.
Tackling Kidnap And Life Threats: If someone comes with a gun in public and points it towards the celebrity vowing to shoot on the spot it is actually considered a very low-level threat in celebrity security rather than if someone decides to mail you a bullet wrapped in envelope which is actually taken very seriously and is a matter of grave concern for the security service. The security service then employs the private investigators to dig the root of such claims and trace down these to their origin and take necessary steps to eliminate them. To find the truth behind such claims a private investigator has to conduct an extensive research involving intelligence gathering, investigation, finding clues, evaluating probable enemies, surveillance and gather information. Based on this information a private investigator carries out further investigation and unravels the truth.
Advance surveillance And Protection: The most important task for a Private investigator is to gather intelligence required for the protection of the client. Based on this intelligence the other security teams work and design the security cover for the client. Without this much-needed intelligence, you cannot say that your client is 100% secure. Most of the criminal gangs work in an organised manner and plan every move very precisely after proper planning. To counter such moves and provide protection to the celebrity you also need to think before acting and plan every detail of security cover after proper discussion and risk analysis.
While travelling or for secure ground transportation of the client a private investigator is sent to the site. His/her main task is to gather intelligence, conduct extensive physical research, scan the whole route and surroundings to be taken by the client for potential risks and hazards and evaluate them.
Conclusion:
The private investigator has a versatile job in his line of work. Among many, he/she notes down all this information and ensures it remains confidential all the time. He/she also makes the necessary changes to be made so as to enhance the security of the client based on the threat perception and also plans for all the contingencies. The private investigator is also tasked to carefully select the alternative routes to be followed by the client in case of an attack.