Skiptrace

Skiptracing is the process of locating a person's whereabouts for any number of purposes. Also commonly refered to as a "locate."

This includes but is not limited to: debt collections, bail bond enforcement (bounty hunting), witness location, questioning, or almost any facet of an investigation that entails making difficult contact with a subject.

This is done by collecting as much information as possible about the subject which is then analyzed, reducted, and verified. Sometimes the subjects current whereabouts are in the data, but is obfuscated by the shear amount of information/disinformation. More often the data will be used to identify third parties that might be able to assist the process (ala the old fashion way). This is where the job becomes more than mere research since one must be very diplomatic in order to get information in this manner without compromising the situation.

Controversy is sometimes raised in connection with the industry, due to persons selling pirated information under false pretenses. Such persons are not recognized by the professional community; they are ostracized and often hunted by legitimate companies in an effort to protect the industry's reputation.

One example of this type of scenario would be an unlicensed "company" selling cell phone numbers or records to anyone with money. This is obtained by the abuse of social engineering/pretexting methods which are normally used by enforcement agencies for the common good when information can not be acquired more direct means. Cell phone data should be legally acquired by the use of a subpoena.

Most often recognized outside of the industry by phone calls placed to individuals that fit the profile of a person being searched for (e.g. same first initial and last name, address or city and state)