Private Investigation Education and Training Key Terms

Learn the various opportunities available to you with a career in private investigation

By Renee Baumgardner

Private investigators have a variety of career opportunities available to them. Individuals with computer skills may find employment as a computer forensic investigator, those with a background in law enforcement may work as a legal, insurance or store investigator and financial gurus can use their expertise as a financial investigator.

Possible career paths of a private investigator include investigating possible illegal activities performed on a computer, financial, insurance and worker’s compensation fraud, theft and adultery.

Private investigators

Private investigators, sometimes referred to as private detectives, offer a variety of services such as providing security detail, running background checks, investigating fraud and performing surveillance. Private investigators typically possess a college degree or have a background in law enforcement in addition to holding proper licensing.
Try: Refer to the Bureau of Labor and Statistics for private investigator educational requirements and career opportunities.

Computer forensic investigators

Computer forensic investigators work to protect organizations' computer assets by utilizing techniques to determine the cause of a computer hack, tracing illegal activities being performed on a computer and recovering deleted data.
Try: For more information on computer forensic investigator education and training, refer to Infosec Institute.

Legal investigators

Legal investigators education and training consists of ethics, report writing, human relations, professional notes, statements, skip tracing and investigative photography. Advanced training may consist of personal injury fraud, surveillance, child abuse investigations, criminal investigations and accident investigations.
Try: Refer to the Investigator Academy for information on basic and advanced legal investigation training.

Financial investigators

Financial investigators perform fraud audits and compliancy assessments, detect fraud and financial crimes (such as embezzlement), and present such finding in courts of law.
Try: For more information on financial investigation training, refer to the Investigation Training Institute.

Store investigators

Store Investigators, also known as loss prevention agents, conduct on-site inspections of retail stores and identify areas of the stores that are prime shoplifting areas and offer solutions that the store can implement to deter future theft from occurring and in turn increase store profits. Store investigators may also work undercover at a retail store to apprehend shoplifters.
Try: Refer to LPAgent's website for more information on the education requirements to become a loss prevention agent.

Surveillance

Private investigators use surveillance as a discrete method to gather data in cases such as insurance fraud and adultery. Various types of surveillance include vehicle surveillance, foot surveillance, electronic surveillance and surveillance photography.
Try: For information on surveillance education and training, refer to the Detective Training Institute.