I am a private citizen. Can I carry out private investigations on my own?
- You can get different kinds of penalties. Pursuant to article. 134 of the T.U.L.P.S. (Consolidated Law on Public Safety Laws) without the Prefect’s license, it is forbidden for entities or individuals to carry out investigations or research or to collect information on behalf of other individuals.
I have some suspects, but they are not demonstrable. Can I request an investigation service?
YES. The investigation may be requested to assert or defend a right in court, to obtain information before the stipulation of a contract (purchase, sale, personal hiring, sales, corporate acquisitions, new shareholders, etc.) and more generally, to verify the validity of your suspects even if they are not demonstrable.
Do you need an authorization to carry out the profession of private investigators? Do you own it?
YES. All Private Investigation Institutes must be authorized by the Prefect pursuant to Art. 134 T.U.L.P.S. Group Top Secret has got the regular investigative license issued by the Prefect.
Can I recognize an unauthorized private investigator? If so, how?
YES. Unauthorized investigative agencies usually offer cheaper hourly rates, and many times they welcome customers in public places as they do not have their own headquarters. The Ministerial Decree concerning the operative Vademecum of private investigators states that the latter cannot elect either his own domicile or a law firm as the seat of his business. For this reason, a legally authorized investigative agency must have its own physical headquarters and clearly display the Investigative License issued by the Prefect together with the Table of Rates applied and approved by the territorial office of the Government. In any case, it is good practice to ask the private investigator to be able to view the Investigation License issued by the Prefecture.
Can I hire a private investigator? If so, how?
YES. After the interview with the private investigator and after verifying that it is a legally authorized investigative agency (see previous question), just give the mandate to the private investigator or the chosen agency.
Is it possible to appoint the detective agency anonymously?
- It is not possible to engage the detective agency anonymously.
According to article 135 of the T.U.L.P.S. anyone requesting an investigative service is always required to show his/her own valid identity document with a photograph. In turn, the private investigator is obliged to register the data of the person living him the mandate to engage in the company’s business register. The subject’s data must be kept at the headquarters of the investigative agency and shown only to authorized law enforcement agencies.
Can private investigators retain data after the assignment?
- Once the investigative investigation is concluded and the investigative report with all the evidence found during the investigation has been delivered to the authorized subjects, the processing of personal data ends. Exception is the case in which the subject who has conferred the assignment requests the temporary retention of the data for judicial purposes.
Is there a “Professional Secret” for detective agencies?
YES, THERE IS. A private investigator and investigation agencies are always bound by professional secrecy according to art. 200 of the Criminal Procedure Code. A private investigator must guarantee absolute confidentiality even if, following the preliminary interview, the client does not give him the mandate. All operators taking part in an investigation are bound to total secrecy. All the operators, in addition to being extremely trustworthy people, are subjected to strict checks, sign a commitment to general confidentiality and from time to time a specific one concerning the investigation they will have to carry out.
Is it lawful to investigate an employee?
YES. The employer can make use of an investigative agency in case of suspect of an unlawful behaviour by the employee to the detriment of his/her company. On the other hand, he cannot use the private investigator to check the normal fulfilment of the employee’s work activity. The employer can carry out checks in the event of repeated illness, in the case of suspicion in the use of permits of law number 104. In the event of theft or wilful misconduct.
So is it legitimate to carry out investigations on an employee / collaborator?
YES. The employer can carry out checks on employees during their absence from work in order to check the veracity of the accident / illness or when there is a poor performance compared to the average level of the company’s productivity. Furthermore, investigations can be carried out in the event of a breach of commercial agreements, non-competition agreements or company news leaks. In these cases the evidence will be used to proceed legally.
Can a person’s phone be intercepted?
- The law prohibits and severely punishes anyone who wiretaps telephone calls.
Is specific documentation released following an investigation?
YES. A report is issued with the description of the activity carried out and its outcome. Mechanical tests (video / photos), any documents acquired and witness hearings where required and / or necessary are usually attached to the written request.
Can I know in advance how much a private investigator costs?
YES. The rates related to an investigation are always agreed in advance. Generally, an hourly rate is applied for an investigation with an amount according to the rates in the relevant prefectural table (available for consultation). During the preliminary consultation, the rate to be applied to the requested service is established together with the client. Rates and expenses are transcribed and signed together with the customer. A detailed report of the activities requested and carried out will be sent with the accounting balance. When you entrust a mandate to an investigator or an agency, you must expect maximum transparency in the reporting services.
Do I have to pay the full amount immediately?
- As per the mandate, a deposit will have to be paid. I will be proportionate to the cost estimated, once the assignment is received. The remaining part for all the services can be paid off easily at the conclusion of the investigation, once the necessary evidence has been received.
Do private investigations harm privacy?
- A private investigator is authorized by law to carry out his work and that is why the results of the investigation represent valid evidence also judicially. The investigator is required to comply with general legal obligations, must comply with the rules of the T.U.L.P.S (Consolidated Law on Public Safety), the Code of Ethics and Good Conduct of private investigators, respect professional ethics and the good sense. The investigator aims to ensure that data processing is carried out in compliance with fundamental rights and freedoms, as well as in the dignity and confidentiality of the persons subject to such processing.
Can a detective agency protect me from a stalker?
YES. Remember that if you are a victim of stalking, you must first contact the police to file a complaint pursuant to article 612 bis of the criminal code. In fact this is the precise law dealing with persecutory acts. The intervention of a private investigator, in this case, can still be very useful for collecting evidence, legally valid, to ascertain the existence of the crime of stalking.
What does a defensive investigation consist of?
A defensive investigation consists of a series of activities aimed at confirming the alibi of those accused of a criminal offense, at determining how reliable the witnesses called by both parties are, to carry out interviews with people who are informed about the facts , to request and produce additional documentation to support the defensive strategy.
Why contacting a detective agency in case of infidelity?
Proving that your partner has been unfaithful can be helpful in a phase of separation. Having proof of the infidelity of the partner or that he/she has maintained a parallel relationship can be useful for the purposes of separation, to obtain the charge with fault. Photos, videos, stalking are useful to build the private and unknown story of the partner. Once his/her aptitude for infidelity has been demonstrated, the civil judge can choose to include the betrayal among the serious facts that led to the separation with charge. And thus will surely affect the economic choice and child support.
What do I have to do if there is an information leak inside my company?
Making information exit the company, can cause a very big economic damage, whether it is strategic information or technical details on the ongoing productions. If you believe that the information leakage is the result of some environmental interceptions, so then you can request an environmental remediation in order to find all the possible bugs that were installed without your knowledge.
Where do our private investigators operate?
Our private investigators can work all around Italy and abroad. Service activation is immediate. Our team is available 24 hours a day, 7 days a week, 365 days a year.
Our working targets
Our services are aimed at personnel, commercial production offices , distribution companies, financial companies and banking institutions, agencies, professionals, small businesses, artisans, private company and individuals. We can therefore say that we offer our services to all those who are interested in getting to know their partners better, finding new ones, deepening their knowledge of potential markets and those they already operate on, defending their brands and patents, defending themselves from harassment or vandalism, as well as from theft or extortion threats . Our investigative services also include the observation of children, the protection of morality, and the verification of economic reliability.
What DO you NOT do under any circumstances?
– We do not intercept phone calls or conversations between individuals
– We do not illegally access databases
– We do not provide telephone traffic records
– We do not violate people’s privacy
– We do not install bugs or anything else similar that is illegal
– We do not carry out operations not permitted by law.
