In the United States, there are nearly 40,000 private detectives and investigators. Jobs for private detectives and investigators are expected to grow 13% through 2030.

Globally, the private investigation services market stands at $18.2 billion USD in 2022. In fact, private investigation services account for 20% of the entire global security services market.

So what's responsible for the growing demand for private detectives and investigators? One word: Fraud.

A rapid explosion in fraud across industry verticals, from data theft to financial fraud, is keeping private detectives and investigators very busy.

But why is fraudulent activity rising so rapidly? The digitalization of businesses means that today, virtually any type of fraudulent activity can be carried out from the comfort of home, sitting in front of a laptop computer.

In this episode of Privacy Files, Rich and Sarah welcome Tom Chavez to the show to hear firsthand the challenges facing today's private investigator.

Tom is the Co-Founder of Dark Horse Intelligence (https://darkhorseintel.com), a global intelligence company that handles a wide variety of services including fraud investigations, security audits and vulnerability assessments. He is also the Founder of Recover My Crytpo (https://recovermycrypto.com), a company that assists in solving cryptocurrency fraud, from stolen cryptocurrency and Ponzi schemes, to ransomware and sim swap attacks. Tom is a licensed private investigator at Gaslamp Quarter Investigations who also handles, when time permits, a broad cross section of cases involving the general public.

From online research and security audits to stakeouts and disguises, Tom goes to great lengths to find the truth.

With more than 25 years in investigations, hacking and social engineering, Tom understands the challenges in truly remaining private. He covers some of the main concerns people have with respect to privacy and then highlights ways you can better protect your personal data.

Tom understands all the tricks of the digital world and as a privacy advocate, he will give you the knowledge necessary to limit your exposure to bad actors.

Links Referenced:

https://darkhorseintel.com/

https://recovermycrypto.com/

https://www.linkedin.com/in/tom-chavez-dark-horse-intelligence/

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