Databases are a great tool for investigators, paralegals and in-house investigators to find information on their subjects quickly, but is that all that’s out there?
There is no such thing as a database that is all-inclusive, or even 100% accurate. There is also a difference between databases available to investigators and databases available to the public for $19.95, which tend to have stale and incorrect information.
As an investigator that specializes in Social Media Investigations or as they are sometimes called, Open Source Intelligence Investigations (OSINT) my databases, techniques, skill and sources are constantly changing and evolving.
Occasionally, reports come across my desk where the client feels something is missing from an investigation that was conducted outside of our office. Many of these ‘reports’ are simply database reports sent to clients as the be all, end all.
When I started my investigative career over 20 years ago, information was not so easily found and still required a lot of boots on the ground, phone calls, letters and endless searching to find the information we can find now by simply entering a name into a pay database.
Of course some of the databases are great at finding quite a bit of information and more and more companies purport to be the latest and greatest, but I also find a lot of erroneous and same-name information I must parse out.
People use different names, nick names, phone numbers, old addresses, different email addresses, combinations of names and even photos to create their profiles and oftentimes don’t want those found easily with just an initial search. Have they resided in another state or are they using a prior name?
Ultimately, databases and initial searches are only a start, a way to find leads to information that must be followed, cross referenced, analyzed, scrutinized and verified as belonging to the subject at hand.
It is my job as an investigator to find if there is something else out there that is not on the surface. Utilizing additional search tools, cross-referencing information and finding nuggets of potential additional information is crucial in each and every investigation to turn over the most complete product possible.
Rest assured API goes above and beyond to find that information so you can make the best decisions on your case.