Finding Public Information

Do you dream of dames with a story to tell, long stakeouts, and uncovering the hidden truth about about people? But you don’t really feel like putting in the kind of work that professional sleuthing requires? No worries. Thanks to a host of online resources, you can be a savvy private eye without ever having to stand up from your computer. In fact, you can get a lot of information just by joining the right communities on Google+.

Here are 8 pages and communities that all part-time PI’s should be subscribed to.

1) Private Investigators

Your first stop should by the Private Investigators Community. There, private investigators from all over the world share advice, links, news that help gumshoes. Every time you open up your Google+ feed, you will become a better private investigor. 

2) Instant Checkmate

Every private eye, amatuer or pro, should have access to public records. You can get arrest records, known addresses, known aliases, marriage and divorce records, and lots of other revealing info on a person. The easiest way to access these documents is through an online service like Instant Checkmate. Subscribe to them on Google+ to get all of their latest updates.

3) Professional Private Investigators and Detectives

Want to be a great amateur? Then you should learn from the pros. Professional private investigators and detectives community swap trade secrets and share helpful links in the Professional Private Investigators and Detectives Community. Subscribe to it to always see awesome PI info on your personal Google+ page.

4) Private Detective UK

This veteran Private Investigator based in England regularly updates their Google+ page with info about surveillance, technology, and legal issues. You’ll also get links to articles about detective and mystery novels and movies.

5) PI Feed

Do you know the law regarding “pretexts?” Do you know what made Holmes and Watson such a great fictional detective duo? You’ll learn when you subscribe to PI Feed’s Google+ page. They deliver a never-ending supply of tips to their followers.

6) National Investigative Training Academy

Becoming an effective private investigator requires learning about how to use background checks, the law, and dozens of other intensive disciplines. The National Investigative Training Academy is dedicated to helping budding PIs get the education they need to become more effective in the field. Their Google+ page links to a weekly blog article that helps you become better at your craft.

7) PI Buzz

PI Buzz is another hot blog for private investigators that serves up info on how to best search databases, how to research genealogy, and more. Add it to your subscription list to become a top shelf PI.

Pursuit Magazine

Pursuit magazine is the largest publication dedicated to serving private investigators, and their Google+ page is a must-subscribe for anyone who has even a casual interest in snooping.

Use Your Investigative Powers For Good

As you gain the ability to learn about people’s lives, you should be cautious to use it only for benevolent (and legal) purposes. With great investigative power comes great responsibility.

Roger Hernandez is a blogger living in Long Beach, California.   He bicycles, surfs, reads 19th century French poetry and writes about social media.

About the author
Andreas co-founded Xavier Media® in 1996 and has since been involved in all kinds of development, marketing and making money online.