Our mothers always warned us that it’s not polite to “snoop”. Yet, as we grow older, it’s become obvious that everyone does it. It seems to be an accepted behavior in this day and age that seems justified as a necessity in our rites of self-protection and self-preservation against scammers, cheaters and liars, as well as business competitors. Not to mention the ‘coolness’ lent by Hollywood and television lend the art of snooping.

Licensed Private Investigators, high technology gadgets, and information resources exist more now than ever before. Child Custody & Recovery, Pre-Nuptial Investigation and Covert Divorce Surveillance are but a few of the newer subjects of intense investigation. The World Wide Web and Internet Newsgroups post thousands of information brokering and how-to resources about spying, surveillance and intelligence. Let’s face it. People are nosy. And, in the US, as well as internationally, spying is a glamorously regarded billion-dollar industry. Information discovered through covert investigation is constantly used in our justice system and even juries chosen for court trials are investigated by both plaintiff and defense to deem the propriety of their involvement in a particular court case.

However, unless one is licensed within the geographic parameters of their jurisdiction or unless the subject has agreed to undergo surveillance, interrogation or covert negotiation, personal spying is illegal and typically considered to be stalking or trespassing. So, before you climb up on your roof with a pair of night vision goggles, you’d better think twice about the legality of what you’re doing for when information discovered through spying is used against a person, the elements of slander or libel and defamation of character come into play. Bottom line, according to Harrisburg Attorney W. Scott Foulkrod IV, “if you are going to accuse someone of something you uncovered by digging into their background or spying on them, you had better be able to justify not only that the information is correct, but also that you uncovered it through channels that are legal—or you may end up in jail even though you may not the perpetrator of the originally alleged crime.”

The issue of spying, whether through an investigator, a federal or police agent, or even via one’s own devices, is a trendy topic full of controversy, particularly in light of the recent freedom of information and personal privacy laws passed locally, statewide and federally. It has become easier than ever for a vengeful business partner, a potential employer or a scorned and bitter woman or man in a jilted relationship to find ways to ‘dig up the dirt’ on someone.

Paranoia, to a degree, is human nature. We fear being watched because then we might be judged and found to be doing something wrong. We fear reprimand, humiliation and punishment. Common sense dictates that if you are not doing something wrong, it should not matter if anyone is watching. But since personal judgment is typically subjective and business competition is brutal, being scrutinized makes us uncomfortable and angry—even if we are not performing an indiscretion. Yet, in today’s society, most would not pass up the opportunity to uncover secret information to use in a business situation or even a romantic relationship.

We are all taught as children that if we snoop without someone’s knowledge, even if we suspect that an indiscretion or crime is occurring, we are prying. Infringing upon someone’s personal privacy deems us as no better than the person who committed the action in question. Furthermore, if we are competing in business, we should do it fairly, and beat out the competition because we maintained the highest standards of integrity, not by digging up dirt. There is but a fine line between legal and moral investigation for common good versus stalking and trespassing over a person’s privacy for personal gain. People spy on one another when their trust is challenged. Feeling cheated in a relationship—either personal or professional, is the premise of most spying that occurs today. Whether for revenge or personal satisfaction, since there are now so many legal channels through which to ferret out a cheating, lying bastard, we feel righteous when our worst suspicions are confirmed.

If spying is performed within the legal parameters and based upon an honest intuition, the invention and ingenuity of the information found, however subtle, can usually equip one with a feeling of fearless intelligence upon being informed. Or intelligent fearlessness, depending on the case. But the intrigue of finding out the information in the first place is like a drug. The more you are able to find out, the more you want to know.

Harrisburg resident and sometime politician Matt Napiltonia is a former Navy seal who performed on several tours of duty in enemy territories on covert missions. He tells how important it is to stay calm and not to tell anyone what you are doing. “In the case of moving into enemy territory, it is most important to make use off all of the officials. If you do things openly, for the purposes of deception, you’re doomed”. It seems that the best practice is that of possibly having to ask for forgiveness after the fact, rather than ever asking for permission to investigate the premises of your suspicions.

In business relationships, background checks and dossier’s are de riguer. When hiring an employee or taking on a business partner, it is typical behavior to do a background check, a credit check, and a psychological evaluation. There are also resources for activity checks, neighbor surveys, pre-employment screening, DMV checks, general surveillance, interview and interrogation, Kenesics, Graphology, Handwriting Analysis, Body Language Assessments and Split-Brain Psychology. All this just to get—or keep—a job!

A huge area of Private Investigation is utilized in Workers Compensation and Insurance Fraud. Aegis Investigative Group, (615-848-7977) is a front runner in the world of electronic and high technology surveillance and monitoring in investigations. They use computer-controlled video and audio surveillance systems that are controlled by a modem and can be accessed from anywhere in the world, via a telephone line. So you can see and hear the goings on right over your networked computer!

Electronic and closed circuit surveillance state of the art practices now utilize Doppler Radar Tracking equipment, much like your television meteorologist might do. This is especially effective if you want to track a stolen vehicle or merchandise, or, perhaps, if you wanted to follow a loved one in a vehicle without actually getting on the road with them. It’s easy, then, to prove where the person or item has been, as it is recorded. “Third Generation Night Vision” video recording systems are helpful with these tracking systems. They use infrared light and zoom laser illumination for covert nighttime surveillance and video documentation can then be provided.

In both personal relationship and those of business, people are becoming better acquainted with digital and fax intercept machines. There are also Electronic Lie Detection machines for use in person or over telecommunications devices. Cellular Intercept, Computer On-Line Intercept and Electronic “Bugs” are used covertly to access audio information covertly.

In this vein, many executives, as well as philanderers, find the need for “de-bugging”. These are electronic countermeasures that business competitors use frequently to insure against the stealing of secrets, the avoidance of eavesdroppers, and the provision of an edge to the competitor in whatever type of relationship. Omni Spectral Correlators for de-bugging sensitive or clandestine meeting scans for audio transmitters, tape recorders, VLF (very low frequency) bugs, and video transmitters, and work automatically, unmanned. Time-Domain Reflectometers, Frequency Spectrum Analyzers, Inductive Wire Tracers, Ultrasonic Tone Generators, and many other like-items enable even the most paranoid to get a good night’s sleep.

There are several “low-technology” ways to find out information on someone, too. Paintball guns are a good way to mark someone perpetrating an incident against you. Red-handed pens incorporate the use of a UV powder that gets all over the writer as well as the document. Information brokers are only a phone call away, and can provide almost anyone with almost any kind of information for a fee.

So, as you can see, spying is big business and there’s no telling who’s listening in on you at any time of the day or night. It’s frightening considering the amount of equipment and agencies available to some immoral shmuck who gets his jollies by invading somebody else’s privacy. It may be part of human nature to spy, for from the time you could first talk and interact with other children, keeping and ferreting out secrets was a major part of childhood. But, there’s also another part of human nature that makes us endeavor to rise above our baser instincts. So, the next time you feel the need to read another’s e-mail left trustingly on the screen or peek into someone’s closet looking for skeletons, maybe you should remember that old standby the Golden Rule. For, do you really want people looking at your skeletons? I doubt it. I doubt it very much.