Glossary of investigation terms

Terms A to Z

Each definition links to the service or the part of the legal and regulatory framework it relates to. If a term you have come across is missing, ask us and we will add it.

Adverse media

A search of news archives and other published material for negative coverage of a person or company, such as reports of litigation, regulatory action, fraud or misconduct. Used in due diligence and background screening because a standard criminal-record check will not surface it.

Attribution

Establishing who is behind an anonymous account, post or message. Done from lawful sources only: public records, patterns across platforms, archived content and the like. It is not always possible, and we say so at the scoping stage. See cyber and OSINT investigation.

Beneficial owner

The person who ultimately owns or controls a company, as opposed to the names on the register. UK companies must record their persons with significant control, but the record is self-reported, so due diligence tests it against other sources.

Chain of custody

The documented record of who handled a piece of evidence, when, and what was done with it, from the moment it was captured to the moment it is produced. Also called continuity. Without it, photographs, video and documents are easier to challenge in proceedings.

Contemporaneous notes

Notes written at the time of an observation rather than reconstructed afterwards. Courts and tribunals give them more weight, which is why surveillance operatives keep a timed observation log throughout a deployment.

Covert surveillance

Observation of a person carried out without their knowledge, either static (from a fixed position) or mobile (on foot or in vehicles). Lawful when it is proportionate to a legitimate aim and does not amount to harassment. The Regulation of Investigatory Powers Act 2000, the Human Rights Act 1998 and the Protection from Harassment Act 1997 set the boundaries.

DBS check

A criminal-record check issued by the Disclosure and Barring Service at basic, standard or enhanced level. It reports convictions and, at higher levels, cautions and barred-list status. It does not cover adverse media, directorships, litigation, regulatory action or anything outside the UK, which is what enhanced background screening adds.

Due diligence

Investigation of a person or company before a transaction, appointment or partnership. Standard due diligence confirms identity and basic records; enhanced due diligence goes further into litigation, insolvency, regulatory history, adverse media, sanctions exposure and ownership. See corporate due diligence.

Engagement letter

The written agreement issued before any work starts. It records the question to be answered, the methods to be used, the cost or estimate, the timescale and how the findings will be reported. Nothing is billed that is not in it. See how we work and our terms of engagement.

Fundamental dishonesty

A finding by a court that a personal-injury claimant has been dishonest about a substantial part of their claim. Where it is made, the whole claim can be dismissed, including the genuine part. Surveillance evidence is often central to the argument. See insurance and claims investigation.

HUMINT

Human intelligence: information gathered by people rather than from documents or databases, through observation, enquiry and being present at the right place and time. On this site it covers surveillance and field work. See human intelligence.

Judgement debtor

A person a court has ordered to pay money who has not paid. A judgement is only worth what can be enforced, and enforcement needs a current address, which is where tracing comes in.

Legal professional privilege

The rule that confidential communications between a client and their lawyer, and material prepared for litigation, do not have to be disclosed to the other side. Instructing an investigator through a solicitor can bring the investigator’s work within litigation privilege, which is why we suggest it for anyone already in proceedings. See for businesses.

Legitimate interests assessment

The documented balancing test carried out when personal data is processed on the legitimate-interests basis under the UK GDPR. It records the purpose, why the processing is necessary, and why the subject’s rights do not outweigh it. One is completed for each engagement that relies on this basis.

Non-molestation order

A family-court order prohibiting one person from harassing, threatening or contacting another, usually a partner or former partner. Breaching one is a criminal offence. We will not take an instruction that would interfere with such an order, and we check for them before tracing or matrimonial work.

OSINT

Open-source intelligence: information collected from publicly accessible sources such as social media, public registers, court records, news archives and web archives, then organised into a coherent picture. It involves no access to private systems or accounts. See cyber and OSINT investigation.

PEP

Politically exposed person: someone who holds, or has held, a prominent public function, along with their close family and known associates. PEP status is not an allegation of wrongdoing, but regulated firms must apply enhanced checks to them, so screening flags it.

Pretexting

Obtaining information by pretending to be someone else or by inventing a false reason for a request, for example calling a bank or a utility posing as the account holder. Usually an offence under the Fraud Act 2006 or the Data Protection Act 2018. We do not do it, and evidence obtained this way is likely to be excluded.

Process server

A person who delivers court documents, such as a claim form or an injunction, to the individual named in them and provides a statement confirming service. Locating the recipient is often the first step. See human intelligence.

Proportionality

The test of whether an intrusion into someone’s private life is justified by the aim it serves and goes no further than necessary. It runs through Article 8 of the Human Rights Act 1998 and is the question a court asks when deciding whether surveillance evidence should be admitted. It is also why every instruction is scoped to a specific question.

Sanctions screening

Checking a person or entity against UK, UN, EU and US sanctions lists, current and historic. Dealing with a sanctioned party can itself be an offence, so this is a standard part of due diligence and senior-hire screening.

Takedown

A request to a platform, web host, image host or search engine to remove or delist content, made under its own rules or on legal grounds. Where requests are ignored, structured follow-up and, if needed, solicitor involvement come next. See cyber threat and harassment and our intimate image abuse guidance.

Tracing

Locating a person’s current address or whereabouts from lawful sources when contact has been lost. We do not hand an address to the client by default; we approach the person on the client’s behalf and let them decide. See missing persons tracing.

Witness statement

A written, signed account of what a person saw or did, in the form required by the court or tribunal, which may be relied on as evidence. Investigators who gathered evidence provide one to accompany their report and, where required, attend to give evidence in person.