Private Detective and Investigators Career Highlights

• Work hours for Private Detectives and Investigators are usually irregular, and could include nights, weekends and holidays; the work can be dangerous, as well.
• About 25 percent of the persons in this occupation are self-employed.
• Candidates often have related experience in law enforcement, insurance, the military, or government investigative or intelligence jobs, and some type of formal training.
• In spite of faster-than-average employment growth, intense competition in this industry is expected due to the large number of highly qualified people who are attracted to this career; most available opportunities will be entry-level positions with detective agencies or in stores that hire detectives on a part-time basis.

Nature of the Work

Private detectives and investigators use various methods to discover the facts. Investigations may involve the use of various types of surveillance or searches. To verify facts, for example an individual’s place of employment or income, they could make phone calls or visit a subject’s workplace. In other investigations, such as those involving missing persons or background checks, investigators frequently interview people to gather information about an individual. Private detectives and investigators aid attorneys, businesses, and the general public with legal, financial, and personal problems.

Private detectives and investigators provide many services. They may provide executive, corporate, and celebrity protection; pre-employment verification; and individual background profiles, for example. They may handle computer crimes, such as identity theft, harassing e-mails, and illegal downloading of copyrighted material, or provide assistance in civil liability and personal injury cases, insurance claims and fraud, child custody and protection cases, missing persons cases, and premarital screening. In some cases they are hired to investigate individuals to prove or disprove infidelity.

Most detectives and investigators obtain training to perform physical surveillance; they may observe a site, such as the residence of a subject, from an inconspicuous location or a vehicle. They must persist with the surveillance, carried out using still and video cameras, binoculars, and a cell phone, until the necessary evidence is obtained. This watching and waiting frequently lasts for a long time.

Detectives sometimes perform computer database searches or work with someone who does. With computers, investigators can quickly compile massive amounts of information on individuals’ prior arrests, convictions, and civil legal judgments; telephone numbers; motor vehicle registrations; association and club memberships; and many other material facts.

Duties of private detectives and investigators depend on what their clients need. In investigations for employers involving fraudulent workers’ compensation claims, investigators may make long-term covert observation of subjects. If a subject is observed performing an activity that contradicts injuries claimed in a worker’s compensation case, the investigator would take video or still photographs to document the activity and report it to their client.

Frequently, private detectives and investigators specialize in certain types of investigations. They might focus on intellectual property theft, for example, investigate and document acts of piracy, help clients stop illegal activity, and provide evidence for prosecution and civil action. Other investigators may specialize in developing financial profiles and asset searches on individuals and entities. Their reports reflect information compiled through interviews, investigation and surveillance, and research, including review of available public documents.

Legal investigators specialize in cases involving the courts. They are generally employed by law firms or lawyers. They often help to prepare criminal defenses, locating witnesses, serving legal documents, interviewing police and prospective witnesses, and gathering and reviewing evidence. Legal investigators sometimes gather information on the parties to a litigation, take photographs, testify in court, and assemble evidence and reports for trials.

Corporate investigators carry out internal and external investigations for corporations. Internal investigations may involve uncovering drug use in the workplace, ensure that expense accounts are not abused, or determine whether employees are stealing merchandise or proprietary information. External investigations are done to reveal criminal schemes originating outside the corporation. An example would be theft of company assets through fraudulent billing of products by suppliers.

Financial investigators are sometimes hired to report confidential financial profiles of individuals or companies that are prospective parties to large financial transactions. These investigators many times are certified public accountants (CPAs) working closely with investment bankers and other accountants. They search for hidden assets in order to recover damages awarded by a court in fraud or theft cases, for example.

Retail stores or hotels hire dectectives who are responsible for controlling losses and protecting assets. Store detectives are also known as loss prevention agents. They safeguard the assets of retail stores by catching anyone attempting to steal merchandise or destroy store property. They prevent theft by shoplifters, vendor representatives, delivery personnel and even store employees; store detectives may also conduct periodic inspections of stock areas, dressing rooms, and restrooms, and sometimes assist in opening and closing the store. They sometimes prepare loss prevention and security reports for store management and may testify in court against persons they apprehend. Hotel detectives protect guests from theft of their belongings and keep order in hotel restaurants and bars.

Private detectives and investigators commonly work irregular hours, nights, weekends and holidays because of the need to conduct surveillance and contact people who are often not available during normal working hours.

Most detectives and investigators spend time away from their offices conducting interviews or surveillance, while others work in their office most of the day conducting computer searches and making phone calls. Those with their own agencies, who employ other investigators, often work primarily in an office during normal business hours.

When the investigator is working on a case away from the office, the environment will vary. Retail store and hotel detectives work on the premises that they protect. Investigators normally work alone, although sometimes they work with others during surveillance or when following a subject in order to avoid detection by the subject.

The work might involve confrontation, so the occupation can be stressful and dangerous. In some situations the investigator may need to be armed, such as certain bodyguard assignments for high profile or celebrity clients. Of course, detectives and investigators carrying handguns must be licensed by the appropriate authority. However, in most cases, a weapon is not necessary since the purpose of the work is gathering information and not law enforcement or criminal apprehension. Agency owners have the additional stress of having to cope with demanding and often distraught clients.

Although there are no formal education requirements for most private detective and investigator jobs, many private detectives have college degrees or some type of formal training or certification. Private detectives and investigators often have previous experience in other occupations, working initially for insurance or collections companies, in the private security industry, or as paralegals. Some investigators enter the field after serving in law enforcement, the military, government auditing and investigative positions, or Federal intelligence jobs.

Law enforcement officers, military investigators, and government agents, who may retire after 20-25 years of service, often become private detectives or investigators in their second career, while others enter from such diverse fields as finance, accounting, commercial credit, investigative reporting, insurance, and law. Frequently they are able to apply their prior work experience in a related investigative specialty. Some enter the occupation directly after completion of a formal training or certification program, or after graduation from college, generally with associate’s or bachelor’s degrees in criminal justice or police science.

Most States and the District of Colombia require private detectives and investigators to be licensed. Licensing requirements vary by State, however: seven States—Alabama, Alaska, Colorado, Idaho, Mississippi, Missouri, and South Dakota—have no statewide licensing requirements, some States have relatively few requirements, while many other States have stringent regulations. More States are requiring mandatory training programs for private detectives and investigators. For example, the Bureau of Security and Investigative Services of the California Department of Consumer Affairs now requires private investigators to be 18 years of age or older; have a combination of education in police science, criminal law, or criminal justice and experience equaling 3 years (6,000 hours) of investigative experience; they must pass a criminal history background check by the California Department of Justice and the FBI (in most States, convicted felons cannot be issued a license); and earn a minimum qualifying score on a 2-hour written examination covering laws and regulations. Also, there are additional requirements for firearms permits.

Most employers look for candidates with ingenuity, persistence, and assertiveness. An applicant can not be afraid of confrontation, must communicate well, and should be able to think quickly on his or her feet. Interviewing and interrogation skills are also important. Since the courts are usually the ultimate judge of a properly conducted investigation, the investigator must be able to present the facts in a manner will convince a jury.

Formal training in criminal justice or police science is beneficial to aspiring private detectives and investigators. Usually corporate investigators must have a bachelor’s degree, preferably in a business-related field, although related experience and some formal training may be acceptable. Often, corporate investigators have a master’s degree in business administration or a law degree, or others are CPAs. Corporate investigators working for large companies sometimes receive formal training from their employers on business practices, management structure, and various finance-related topics. Typically, the screening process for potential corporate investigators will include a background check for a criminal history.

Many investigators earn certification from a professional organization to demonstrate competency in their field. The National Association of Legal Investigators (NALI) offers the Certified Legal Investigator designation to licensed investigators who work on negligence or criminal defense investigations. To earn the designation, applicants must meet experience, educational, and continuing-training requirements and must pass written and oral exams administered by the NALI.

According to the U.S. Department of Labor Statistics, private detectives and investigators held about 43,000 jobs in 2004. Approximately 26 percent were self-employed, including those who held a second jobs as a self-employed private detective. About 27 percent of jobs were in investigation and security services, while another 15 percent were in retail stores. The remainder worked mostly in State and local government, legal services firms, employment services companies, insurance agencies, and credit mediation establishments, including banks and other depository institutions.

Intense competition is expected. Private detective and investigator careers attract many qualified people, including relatively young retirees from law enforcement and military careers. The best job prospects will be in entry-level jobs with detective agencies or in part-time opportunities in stores. The best opportunities for those seeking store detective jobs will be with larger chains and discount stores.

Employment of private detectives and investigators is projected  to grow faster than average for all occupations through 2014. Replacement of those who retire or leave the occupation should create many job openings. Higher demand for private detectives and investigators will come about as a result of fear of crime, increased litigation, and the need to protect confidential information and property of all kinds. Increased criminal activity on the Internet, such as identity theft, spamming, e-mail harassment, and illegal downloading of copyrighted materials, will increase the demand for private investigators specializing in technology. Employee background checks will become standard for an increasing number of jobs, and growing financial activity worldwide will increase the demand in corporations to control internal and external financial losses and to monitor competitors and prevent industrial spying.

In May 2004, median annual earnings of salaried private detectives and investigators were $32,110; the middle 50 percent earned between $24,080 and $43,260; the lowest 10 percent earned less than $19,260, and the highest 10 percent earned more than $58,470. Earnings of private detectives and investigators differ broadly by employer, specialty, and geographic area.

For local licensing requirements, contact your State Department of Public Safety, State Division of Licensing, or local or State police headquarters.

For information on legal investigator careers and about the Certified Legal Investigator credential, contact:

For a directory of training and certification programs, and degree programs, go back to:

*Source: Bureau of Labor Statistics, U.S. Department of Labor.