[Seattle-editorial] article: Spying in Seattle

Fri Oct 17 13:12:43 PDT 2003

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Subject: [Seattle-editorial] article: Spying in Seattle

Here is the article and the summary ~ Okay, I will keep sending you local
stories regularly since we seem to need those more...
Hope some of these are useful....
kirst

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<P>Spying in Seattle
<BR>by Kirsten Anderberg 

Spying on citizens is not limited to police and government agencies. In
every city, including Seattle, there are many private
detectives/investigators (aka spies) making a living. The 2003 Qwest
Yellow Pages for Metro Seattle contains 94 listings under the heading
"Investigators." Seattle's private detectives provide anything from
innocent witness locations for attorneys, to evil corporate spying
couched by industry terms such as "fraud prevention and risk management."

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<P>Spying in Seattle
<BR>by Kirsten Anderberg 

Spying on citizens is not limited to police and government agencies.
In every city, including Seattle, there are many private
detectives/investigators (aka spies) making a living. The 2003 Qwest
Yellow Pages for Metro Seattle contains 94 listings under the heading
"Investigators." Seattle's private detectives provide anything from
innocent witness locations for attorneys, to evil corporate spying
couched by industry terms such as "fraud prevention and risk management."

Let's say you're injured on the job. You can't work, so you collect
Labor and Industries (L&I) Disability Insurance. The state and a former
employer pay into that insurance, and premiums fluctuate in industrial
insurance according to accidents, just as they do with car accidents and
auto insurance. An employer will often pay a private detective for video
surveillance of the person claiming the disability, doing something he
claims he cannot. For instance, if you were not working due to a back
injury, footage of you hauling a 40 pound bag of dog food into your trunk
may be damaging. Spies and employers will argue the video is proof the
disability does not exist.

Industry terms exist in the spy industry. For instance, the "CLAIMANT"
is the person making an insurance claim, usually regarding a disability
or property damage. The "claimant" is the one being spied upon. The
"CLIENT" is the entity paying the spy. The "client" is usually an
insurance company, an ex-employer of the claimant, an attorney or
government agency. "SKIP TRACING" is another spy term. "Skip tracing"
uses a combination of information sources to patchwork together one solid
lead to find and follow the claimant. Information gathering is like a big
logic puzzle. Clues lead to more clues. It is in this unraveling and
piecing together that detectives find their forte, and make their living.

Another spy term is the word "PRETEXT." "Pretext" is a way to feel out
a subject, with a seemingly innocent interaction, for covert purposes. I
actually saw Lucy explaining "pretext" to Ethel the other day on "I Love
Lucy." And yes, she used the actual word "pretext." Lucy said it was
asking for information, saying it was for one purpose, and really using
it for another purpose. A classic pretext interaction is a marketing
survey. A stranger comes to your door and offers a token gift in exchange
for a moment of your time. The spy doing pretext will ask questions, such
as what type of car do you drive? Where do you shop? Where do you work?
How many kids do you have? Are you married? What are your hobbies? Then,
using this information, surveillance will begin on your car, where you
shop, where you work, where you conduct social activities, on the golf
course, at your kids' schools, at community cake decorating classes, on
e-mail groups, at equestrian clubs, whatever it takes.

Private Investigators operating in Washington State need to have a
professional license. You can view the requirements for becoming a spy in
Washington at <a
href="http://www.dol.wa.gov/ppu/pifront.htm">www.dol.wa.gov/ppu/pifront.h
tm</A> , on the Washington Department of Licensing (DOL) website. Private
Investigators also must follow the Revised Codes of Washington (RCW's).
To view the laws regarding private spying in Washington state, visit the
RCW page of the Washington State Legislature site (<a
href="http://www.leg.wa.gov/RCW">www.leg.wa.gov/RCW</A>), scroll down to
Businesses and Professions, Title 18, then proceed to 18.165, Private
Investigators.

This is briefly how a spy in Seattle often works. A client calls in a
claimant's name. The spy takes that information and begins a skip trace.
Telephone directory is called, driver's records are requested from the
Washington State Patrol. Requests for medical records full of personal
information will ensue. The State Department of Revenue (DOR) will be
called at 1-800-647-7706, pushing 1, followed by 2, then by 0.
Information on any in-state businesses the individual ever had, including
addresses of owner and business, are often sitting right there, for free.
You can also access these online at the DOR site (<a
href="http://www.dor.wa.gov">www.dor.wa.gov</A>). Click on "Public
Records Database." State vehicle registration information will be
obtained from the Washington State Vehicle/Vessel Information Processing
System (VIPS). VIPS says it "enters into contracts to provide access to
vehicle and vessel registration information." Read about VIPS at the DOL
website (<a href="http://www.dol.wa.gov">www.dol.wa.gov</A>). Click on
the "Privacy" link, then hit "Public Access to Information." Voter
records are another good hit. Private "identification and credential
verification services," such as the nation's leader, Choicepoint (<a
href="http://www.choicepoint.net">www.choicepoint.net</A>), are often
contracted by investigators. Files are kept, in Seattle private offices,
about claimants' children, spouses, physical descriptions, property and
vehicles, previous addresses, neighbors, injuries and more! Once located,
agents are sent into the field to do pretext, then to do video
surveillance.

Next time you think Big Brother is only a government employee, open up
your phone book, and look under "Investigator." These spies work above
and below laws governing police spying. And often are contracted by
governmental agencies. If there are 94 listed spies in the current
Seattle phone book -- along with all the investigators working directly
for various companies -- who do you think they are spying on?

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